French grammar · Intermediate
Irregular -ir Verbs in French: Three Families That Cover Almost All of Them
Irregular -ir verbs are the -ir verbs that refuse the -iss- pattern. They split into three tidy families: partir and dormir drop their final stem consonant in the singular, ouvrir and offrir borrow the -er endings, and venir and tenir change vowel in four of the six forms.
Nous partons tôt demain matin.
We're leaving early tomorrow morning.
What it is
There are only about fifty irregular -ir verbs, but they include partir, sortir, dormir, venir, tenir, ouvrir, and offrir, so you meet them constantly. None of them takes the -iss- of finir. Instead each belongs to one of three families, and inside a family the pattern is completely consistent.
partir → je pars, tu pars, il part, nous partons, vous partez, ils partent. — to leave → I leave, you leave, he leaves, we leave, you leave, they leave.
How to spot it
Say the nous form. Nous partons, nous ouvrons, and nous venons all lack the -iss- that would mark a regular verb, and each one points at a different family.
- Je dors mal en ce moment. — I'm sleeping badly at the moment. (dormir family)
- J'ouvre la fenêtre. — I'm opening the window. (ouvrir family)
- Je viens de Lyon. — I'm from Lyon. (venir family)
- Je cours tous les matins. — I run every morning. (courir, on its own)
None of these verbs takes new members. The list is closed, which means the effort you put in is finite.
Irregular -ir Verbs Quick Reference
The three families and the loners
| Family | Members | Singular pattern | Participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| partir / dormir | partir, sortir, dormir, servir, sentir, mentir | drops the final stem consonant | parti, dormi, servi |
| ouvrir / offrir | ouvrir, offrir, couvrir, souffrir, découvrir | takes -e, -es, -e like an -er verb | ouvert, offert, souffert |
| venir / tenir | venir, tenir, revenir, devenir, obtenir | ie in the stem, doubled n in ils | venu, tenu, obtenu |
| courir | courir, parcourir, secourir | regular -s, -s, -t on cour- | couru |
| mourir | mourir | meur- in the singular and in ils | mort |
| cueillir | cueillir, accueillir, recueillir | takes -e, -es, -e like an -er verb | cueilli |
| fuir | fuir, s'enfuir | fui- then fuy- in nous and vous | fui |
Common Irregular -ir Verbs Examples in French
Irregular -ir verbs in everyday use:
Leaving and Going Out
- Je pars dans cinq minutes.
- I'm leaving in five minutes.
- Tu sors ce soir ?
- Are you going out tonight?
- Nous partons en vacances lundi.
- We're going on holiday on Monday.
- Ils sortent le chien deux fois par jour.
- They take the dog out twice a day.
Partir and sortir take être in the compound past when nothing is being moved: je suis parti, elle est sortie.
Sleeping, Serving, Feeling
- Il dort encore.
- He's still asleep.
- On sert le dîner à vingt heures.
- Dinner is served at eight.
- Je sens une odeur de brûlé.
- I can smell something burning.
- Vous mentez très mal.
- You're a very bad liar.
Sentir covers both to smell and to feel: je sens le café, je me sens mieux.
Opening and Offering
- J'ouvre à neuf heures.
- I open at nine.
- Elle offre des fleurs à sa mère.
- She's giving her mother flowers.
- Nous découvrons la ville à pied.
- We're discovering the city on foot.
- Ils souffrent du bruit.
- They suffer from the noise.
These verbs sound exactly like -er verbs in the present. Only the infinitive and the participle reveal the -ir.
Coming and Holding
- Je viens te chercher à la gare.
- I'll come and pick you up at the station.
- Elle tient un petit hôtel.
- She runs a small hotel.
- Nous revenons dans une heure.
- We'll be back in an hour.
- Ils deviennent impatients.
- They're getting impatient.
Venir de plus an infinitive means to have just done something: je viens de finir.
How Irregular -ir Verbs Work
Each family has one idea behind it, and the idea is usually about how much of the stem survives when the ending is silent.
The Partir Family Loses a Consonant
Remove -ir from partir and you get part-. In the singular French also drops the final consonant of that stem, leaving par- plus -s, -s, -t. The consonant comes back in the plural, where the ending protects it.
Je pars, nous partons.
I'm leaving, we're leaving.
par-s, par-s, par-t, then part-ons.
The Ouvrir Family Borrows -er Endings
Ouvrir, offrir, couvrir, souffrir, and cueillir take -e, -es, -e, -ons, -ez, -ent. In the present they are indistinguishable from -er verbs, and their -ir surfaces only in the infinitive and the participle.
Tu offres un cadeau à Léa ?
Are you giving Léa a present?
j'ouvre, tu ouvres, il ouvre.
The Venir Family Changes Its Vowel
Venir and tenir use vien- and tien- when the ending is silent, and ven- and ten- when it isn't. In the third-person plural the n doubles: ils viennent, ils tiennent. The pattern is the same stress effect that makes ils prennent.
Elle vient toujours en retard.
She always turns up late.
viens, viens, vient, venons, venez, viennent.
The Plural Endings Never Vary
Whatever the family, nous takes -ons, vous takes -ez, and ils takes -ent or -ent with a doubled consonant. No irregular -ir verb has an unusual plural ending, so you only ever need to work out the stem.
Vous dormez bien ici ?
Do you sleep well here?
-ons, -ez, -ent, always.
The Participles Come in Three Shapes
The partir family and the venir family give -i and -u respectively (parti, dormi, venu, tenu). The ouvrir family gives -ert (ouvert, offert, couvert, souffert). Mourir alone gives mort.
Il a ouvert le courrier.
He opened the post.
-i, -u, or -ert.
Common Mistakes with Irregular -ir Verbs
Incorrect: Nous partissons demain. — We're leaving tomorrow.
Correct: Nous partons demain. — We're leaving tomorrow.
The -iss- belongs to regular -ir verbs only. Partir takes plain -ons, and learners who have just drilled finir tend to spread the pattern everywhere.
Incorrect: Je ouvris la porte. — I'm opening the door.
Correct: J'ouvre la porte. — I'm opening the door.
Ouvrir takes -er endings in the present, so the first person is j'ouvre. J'ouvris exists but is the passé simple, a literary past tense.
Incorrect: Ils venent ce soir. — They're coming tonight.
Correct: Ils viennent ce soir. — They're coming tonight.
Venir uses vien- with a doubled n when the ending is silent. The plain stem ven- only appears in nous venons and vous venez.
Incorrect: J'ai ouvri la fenêtre. — I opened the window.
Correct: J'ai ouvert la fenêtre. — I opened the window.
The whole ouvrir family forms its participle in -ert. Applying the regular -i gives a form that doesn't exist, and the same trap catches offert and souffert.
The Three Families in Full
Read these tables downwards. Each family is consistent, so learning one verb from each column gives you every other member of that family for nothing.
The partir family
Partir, sortir, dormir, servir, sentir, and mentir. The final consonant of the stem vanishes in the three singular forms and returns in the plural.
| Pronoun | partir | dormir | servir | sentir |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| je / j' | pars | dors | sers | sens |
| tu | pars | dors | sers | sens |
| il / elle / on | part | dort | sert | sent |
| nous | partons | dormons | servons | sentons |
| vous | partez | dormez | servez | sentez |
| ils / elles | partent | dorment | servent | sentent |
Participles: parti, dormi, servi, senti. Partir and sortir take être; dormir, servir, and sentir take avoir.
The ouvrir family
Ouvrir, offrir, couvrir, souffrir, and cueillir. Nothing about the present tense hints that these are -ir verbs.
| Pronoun | ouvrir | offrir | souffrir | cueillir |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| je / j' | ouvre | offre | souffre | cueille |
| tu | ouvres | offres | souffres | cueilles |
| il / elle / on | ouvre | offre | souffre | cueille |
| nous | ouvrons | offrons | souffrons | cueillons |
| vous | ouvrez | offrez | souffrez | cueillez |
| ils / elles | ouvrent | offrent | souffrent | cueillent |
Participles: ouvert, offert, souffert — but cueilli, which follows the ordinary -i pattern instead.
The venir family, plus courir and mourir
Venir and tenir alternate between ie and e. Courir keeps one stem throughout. Mourir uses meur- wherever the ending is silent.
| Pronoun | venir | tenir | courir | mourir |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| je / j' | viens | tiens | cours | meurs |
| tu | viens | tiens | cours | meurs |
| il / elle / on | vient | tient | court | meurt |
| nous | venons | tenons | courons | mourons |
| vous | venez | tenez | courez | mourez |
| ils / elles | viennent | tiennent | courent | meurent |
Participles: venu, tenu, couru, mort. Revenir, devenir, obtenir, and appartenir copy their parent verb exactly.
The same verbs in the compound past
This is where the auxiliary choice matters. Partir, sortir, venir, and mourir all take être and agree with the subject; dormir, ouvrir, courir, and tenir take avoir and don't.
| Pronoun | partir (être) | venir (être) | ouvrir (avoir) | courir (avoir) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| je / j' | suis parti(e) | suis venu(e) | ai ouvert | ai couru |
| tu | es parti(e) | es venu(e) | as ouvert | as couru |
| il / elle / on | est parti(e) | est venu(e) | a ouvert | a couru |
| nous | sommes parti(e)s | sommes venu(e)s | avons ouvert | avons couru |
| vous | êtes parti(e)(s) | êtes venu(e)(s) | avez ouvert | avez couru |
| ils / elles | sont parti(e)s | sont venu(e)s | ont ouvert | ont couru |
Sortir switches to avoir when it has an object: elle est sortie against elle a sorti la poubelle.
Participles in -ert and Futures With a Double R
Two details from this group turn up in places you wouldn't expect, and both are worth learning early because they affect other tenses.
The -ert participles
Ouvrir, offrir, couvrir, découvrir, and souffrir all form a participle in -ert. These behave like ordinary participles, including as adjectives, where they agree normally.
- La porte est ouverte.
- The door is open.
- Il m'a offert un livre.
- He gave me a book.
- Les tables sont couvertes de neige.
- The tables are covered in snow.
- Elle a beaucoup souffert.
- She suffered a great deal.
Mourir sits nearby with mort, which also doubles as an adjective: des feuilles mortes.
Courir and mourir double their r in the future
Both verbs take a future and conditional stem with two r's: courr- and mourr-. The doubled r is pronounced, and it's the only thing distinguishing the future from the present in fast speech.
- Je courrai le marathon en avril.
- I'll run the marathon in April.
- Nous mourrons de faim avant d'arriver.
- We'll be starving before we get there.
- Tu courras plus vite avec ces chaussures.
- You'll run faster in these shoes.
Venir and tenir change stem instead: je viendrai, je tiendrai. The d appears out of nowhere and stays for the whole future.
Venir de and être en train de
Venir is the backbone of one of French's most useful constructions. Venir de plus an infinitive means to have just done something, and it stays in the present even though it describes the past.
- Je viens de recevoir ton message.
- I've just got your message.
- Elle vient de sortir.
- She's just gone out.
- Nous venions de finir quand il est arrivé.
- We had just finished when he arrived.
In the imperfect, venait de means had just: il venait de partir, he had just left.
Irregular -ir Verbs FAQs
- Which -ir verbs are irregular in French?
- About fifty, in three families: partir, sortir, dormir, servir, sentir, mentir; ouvrir, offrir, couvrir, souffrir, découvrir, cueillir; and venir, tenir with their compounds. Courir, mourir, and fuir stand slightly apart with their own patterns.
- What's the difference between finir and partir?
- Only the plural. Both give je finis and je pars in the singular, but finir adds a syllable in the plural (nous finissons) while partir doesn't (nous partons). That single difference decides the imperfect and the subjunctive as well.
- Why does ouvrir take -er endings?
- Because its Latin ancestor behaved that way and the pattern survived. In practice it means j'ouvre, tu ouvres, il ouvre, exactly like j'aime. The -ir only shows in the infinitive and in the participle ouvert.
- Do irregular -ir verbs take avoir or être?
- It depends on the verb, not the family. Partir, sortir, venir, revenir, devenir, and mourir take être and agree with the subject: elle est venue. Dormir, servir, ouvrir, offrir, courir, and tenir take avoir: elle a couru.
- How do I remember which family a verb belongs to?
- Learn each verb with its nous form and its participle: partir / nous partons / parti, ouvrir / nous ouvrons / ouvert, venir / nous venons / venu. Those two extra pieces of information identify the family and generate every other form.