finir Examples, Sentences & Quiz in French

finir — finish — is one of the verbs you will use every day in French. finir is the verb for talking about finishing work: it comes up whenever you talk about describing homework or ending a book. On this page you will find finir in real sentences, grouped by meaning and tense, two short texts that show it in context, the mistakes learners actually make with it, and a ten-question quiz with explained answers. Start with the examples, say them aloud, and then test yourself.

Example sentences with finir

In the present tense

  • “Je finis le travail.” — “I finish the work.”
  • “Tu finis mes devoirs.” — “You finish my homework.”
  • “Il finit le livre.” — “He finishes the book.”
  • “Nous finissons à temps.” — “We finish on time.”
  • “Vous finissez le travail.” — “You finish the work.”
  • “Ils finissent mes devoirs.” — “They finish my homework.”

In the passé composé

  • “J'ai fini le travail cette semaine.” — “I have finished the work this week.”
  • “Tu as fini mes devoirs cette semaine.” — “You have finished my homework this week.”
  • “Il a fini le livre cette semaine.” — “He has finished the book this week.”
  • “Nous avons fini à temps cette semaine.” — “We have finished on time this week.”
  • “Vous avez fini le travail cette semaine.” — “You have finished the work this week.”
  • “Ils ont fini mes devoirs cette semaine.” — “They have finished my homework this week.”

In other tenses

The same verb in the imperfect, the future, the conditional and the present subjunctive — the four tenses that complete the picture. All forms come from the verified tables.

  • “Je finissais le travail avant.” — “I used to finish the work before.”
  • “Je finirai mes devoirs demain.” — “I will finish my homework tomorrow.”
  • “Je finirais le livre un jour.” — “I would finish the book one day.”
  • “Bien que il finisse à temps” — “Although he finishes on time.”

finir in context

Je finis le travail. Tu finis mes devoirs. Il finit le livre. Nous finissons à temps.

I finish the work. You finish my homework. He finishes the book. We finish on time.

J'ai fini le travail. Il a fini mes devoirs. Nous avons fini le livre.

I have finished the work this week. He has finished my homework this week. We have finished the book this week.

Common mistakes with finir

Mistake 1

Wrong: Je finir le travail.

Right: Je finis le travail.

The infinitive never takes a subject: after je you need the conjugated form finis.

Mistake 2

Wrong: Je finissons mes devoirs.

Right: Je finis mes devoirs.

finissons is the nous form. With je, use finis.

Mistake 3

Wrong: Hier, je finis le livre.

Right: Hier, j'ai fini le livre.

Yesterday needs the passé composé ai fini, not the present.

Mistake 4

Wrong: Bien que je finis à temps.

Right: Bien que je finisse à temps.

After bien que French needs the subjunctive finisse.

Mistake 5

Wrong: Je finissais le travail hier. (said of one finished moment)

Right: J'ai fini le travail hier.

The imperfect describes an ongoing or repeated past. One finished moment yesterday takes the passé composé.

Quiz: test yourself on finir

Ten questions on finir. Choose the right form, then check the answer key below.

  1. What is the tu form of finir in the Present indicative?

    • A) finissons
    • B) finis
    • C) finissez
    • D) finissent

  2. What is the nous form of finir in the Present indicative?

    • A) finit
    • B) finissent
    • C) finis
    • D) finissons

  3. What is the il/elle form of finir in the Present perfect?

    • A) ai fini
    • B) avons fini
    • C) a fini
    • D) as fini

  4. What is the je form of finir in the Imperfect?

    • A) finissiez
    • B) finissions
    • C) finissais
    • D) finissait

  5. What is the nous form of finir in the Future?

    • A) finirez
    • B) finirons
    • C) finira
    • D) finirai

  6. What is the tu form of finir in the Conditional?

    • A) finirait
    • B) finirais
    • C) finiraient
    • D) finiriez

  7. What is the je form of finir in the Present subjunctive?

    • A) finisse
    • B) finissent
    • C) finisses
    • D) finissions

  8. What is the il/elle form of finir in the Imperfect subjunctive?

    • A) finisse
    • B) finissent
    • C) finît
    • D) finisses

  9. What is the gerund of finir?

    • A) dormant
    • B) buvant
    • C) finissant

  10. What is the past participle of finir?

  • A) bu
  • B) dormi
  • C) fini

Answer key

  1. B) finis — The tu form of finir in the present indicative is finis.
  2. D) finissons — The nous form of finir in the present indicative is finissons.
  3. C) a fini — The il/elle form of finir in the present perfect is a fini.
  4. C) finissais — The je form of finir in the imperfect is finissais.
  5. B) finirons — The nous form of finir in the future is finirons.
  6. B) finirais — The tu form of finir in the conditional is finirais.
  7. A) finisse — The je form of finir in the present subjunctive is finisse.
  8. C) finît — The il/elle form of finir in the imperfect subjunctive is finît.
  9. C) finissant — The gerund of finir is en finissant; it is used after en for actions in progress.
  10. C) fini — The past participle of finir is fini; perfect tenses use avoir + fini.

Frequently asked questions

What does finir mean in English?

finir means “finish”. You use it for talking about finishing work, for describing homework, and for ending a book.

Is finir regular or irregular?

finir is regular, and it is irregular in these tenses: none — it is regular in every tense. The gerund is en finissant and the past participle is fini.

How do I say “I finish” in French?

Say “Je finis le travail.” — “I finish the work.” The je form of the present is finis.

Where can I see the full conjugation of finir?

On the full conjugation page, which has every tense, and on the Finir Present Tense Conjugation in French page.

How to practise finir this week

Pick one tense a day and say five sentences with finir out loud, using the examples on this page as your starting point. On the first day, use only the present tense and the complements from the examples above — le travail, mes devoirs and le livre — and change only the person, so you hear how finis, finis and finit sound next to each other. On the second day, retell yesterday in the passé composé with ai fini and the other perfect forms from the table. On the third day, write three short plans for tomorrow in the future tense, and on the fourth day, turn them into polite conditional sentences. Keep a small notebook and write each new sentence down: seeing en finissant and fini in your own handwriting fixes them in memory far better than reading them once. Finally, take the quiz above again without looking at the answer key — when you can answer all ten questions from memory, move on to the next verb in the hub.

Pronunciation

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for finir, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

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