French Verb Finisher
The regular –ir verb finir, "to finish," is normally pretty simple, but different prepositions and auxiliary verbs can make it a little tricky.
Finir = to finish, complete (transitive)
Finis ton verre ! |
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Finish your glass! Drink up! |
Je vais finir les devoirs demain. |
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I’m going to finish the homework tomorrow. |
Finir = to finish, end (intransitive)
La réunion finit à midi. |
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The meeting ends at noon. |
J’aime les films qui finissent bien. |
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I like movies with a happy ending. |
Finir in compound tenses
Generally speaking, finir requires avoir as its auxiliary verb in the compound tenses and moods.
Par exemple…
J’ai fini les devoirs hier. |
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I finished the homework yesterday. |
Tu as fini ton repas ? |
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Have you finished your meal? |
In impersonal constructions and with inanimate objects, the auxiliary can be être.
Par exemple…
C’est fini ! |
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It’s over! |
L’école est finie. |
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School is out. |
With être as the auxiliary verb, finir means "finished" as in dead, figuratively.
Par exemple…
Cet acteur est fini. |
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That actor is finished. (His career is over.) |
Nos ennuis sont enfin finis. |
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Our worries are finally over. |
Finir de + infinitive = to stop doing
Finis de crier ! |
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Stop yelling! |
Tu vas finir de te plaindre ? |
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Are you going to stop complaining? |
Finir en = to end in / end up in
Tous les mots qui finissent en –sion sont féminins. |
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All words that end in –sion are feminine. |
Le voleur a fini en prison. |
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The thief ended up in prison. |
Finir par + infinitive = to end up doing / to do in the end
Nous avons fini par acheter la maison. |
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We ended up buying the house. |
Ils ont fini par divorcer. |
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They got divorced in the end. |
En finir avec / de = to be done with
J’en ai fini avec tout ça. |
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I’m done with all that. |
Il n’en finit jamais de se vanter. |
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He never stops bragging. |
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