6.1.7

Irregular IR Verbs (1/2)

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Verbs Like 'Partir'

There are many IR verbs that are conjugated like 'Partir' (to leave). They have irregular stems.

1) The stem

1) The stem

  • For 'je' et 'tu' take 'partir', for example, and remove the 'ir'.
  • Then remove the 't'.
    • Partir → par.
  • For 'il/elle/on', 'nous', 'vous', 'ils/elles', you keep the 't'.
    • The stem is part.
2) Partir

2) Partir

  • Je pars - I leave.
  • Tu pars - you (singular) leave.
  • Il/elle/on part - he/she/one leaves.
  • Nous partons - we leave.
  • Vous partez - you (plural/formal) leave.
  • Ils/elles partent - they leave.
3) Verbs that follow this pattern

3) Verbs that follow this pattern

  • Dormir - to sleep.
  • Sortir - to go out.
  • Sentir - to feel.
  • Mentir - to lie.
  • Servir - to serve
  • Derivatives of these verbs follow the same pattern, for example 'consentir' (to consent).

Verbs That End in 'vrir'

Verbs that end in 'vrir' are conjugated like regular 'er' verbs.

1) The stem

1) The stem

  • Remove the 'ir' from the infinitive.
  • Ouvrir → ouvr
2) Add the 'er' present tense endings

2) Add the 'er' present tense endings

  • J'ouvre - I open.
  • Tu ouvres - you (singular) open.
  • Il/elle/on ouvre - he/she/one opens.
  • Nous ouvrons - we open.
  • Vous ouvrez - you (plural/formal) open.
  • Ils/elles ouvrent - they open.

Venir, Tenir

The verbs, 'venir' and 'tenir' are irregular but follow the same pattern.

Venir - to come

Venir - to come

  • Je viens - I come.
  • Tu viens - you (singular) come.
  • Il/elle/on vient - he/she/one comes.
  • Nous venons - we come.
  • Vous venez - you (plural/formal) come.
  • Ils/elles viennent - they come.
Tenir - to hold

Tenir - to hold

  • Je tiens - I hold.
  • Tu tiens - you (singular) hold.
  • Il/elle/on tient - he/she/one holds.
  • Nous tenons - we hold.
  • Vous tenez - you (plural/formal) hold.
  • Ils/elles tiennent - they hold.
Jump to other topics
1

Home & Abroad

1.1

Town & Rural Life

1.1.1Town1.1.2What, Which, Where?1.1.3What is There in Your Region?1.1.4Places in the Town1.1.5Things To Do
1.2

Holiday, Tourism & Directions

1.2.1Countries1.2.2Holidays1.2.3Going on Holiday1.2.4Tourism1.2.5Food1.2.6Eating Out1.2.7Opinions on Food1.2.8Directions (1/2)1.2.9Directions (2/2)1.2.10Exam-Style Questions - Holidays
1.3

Customs

1.3.1Festivals & Customs1.3.2Festivals and Customs 2
1.4

Everyday Life & Traditions

1.4.1Greetings
2

Education & Employment

2.1

School Life & Routine

2.1.1Subjects (1/2)2.1.2Subjects (2/2)2.1.3School Routine2.1.4School Life2.1.5Exam-Style Questions - School Life
2.2

School Trips, Events & Exchanges

2.2.1School Trips
2.3

Future Plans & Work

2.3.1Education Post-162.3.2Jobs (1/2)2.3.3Jobs (2/2)2.3.4Job Applications2.3.5Career2.3.6Learning a Language2.3.7Charity2.3.8Exam-Style Questions - Charity Work
3

Personal Life & Relationships

3.1

House & Home

3.1.1Home3.1.2Rooms of the House3.1.3In Your House
3.2

Daily Routine & Helping at Home

3.2.1Routine3.2.2Helping at Home
3.3

Family & Friends

3.3.1Describing Yourself3.3.2Physical Appearance3.3.3Personality3.3.4Friends3.3.5Opinions on Friends3.3.6Relationships3.3.7Family3.3.8Other Family Members3.3.9Role Model3.3.10Childhood3.3.11Exam-Style Questions - Family
4

The World Around Us

4.1

Global Issues

4.1.1The Environment (1/2)4.1.2The Environment (2/2)4.1.3Exam-Style Questions - The Environment4.1.4Addressing the Issue4.1.5Poverty & Homelessness4.1.6Social Issues4.1.7Energy
4.2

Weather

4.2.1Good Weather4.2.2Bad Weather
4.3

Travel & Transport

4.3.1Transport
4.4

The Media

4.4.1Social Media4.4.2The Internet4.4.3Exam-Style Questions - Internet
4.5

Information & Tech

4.5.1Mobile Technology
5

Social Activities, Fitness & Health

5.1

Special Occasions

5.1.1Parties
5.2

Hobbies & Interests

5.2.1In Your Free-Time5.2.2Music5.2.3Cinema5.2.4TV5.2.5Sport5.2.6Why Do You Play Sport?5.2.7Sports (1/3)5.2.8Sports (2/3)5.2.9Sports (3/3)5.2.10Exam-Style Questions - Sport
5.3

Numbers

5.3.1Numbers 1-205.3.2Numbers 21-100
5.4

Shopping & Money

5.4.1Shopping For Food5.4.2Style & Fashion5.4.3Materials5.4.4Money Matters5.4.5Exam-Style Questions - Pocket Money
5.5

Illness & Health

5.5.1Healthy living5.5.2Unhealthy living5.5.3Illness (1/2)5.5.4Illness (2/2)5.5.5Aches & Pains
5.6

Food & Drink

5.6.1Fruits5.6.2Vegetables5.6.3Other Foods5.6.4Exam-Style Questions - Fruits5.6.5Meat5.6.6Fish5.6.7Drinks & Snacks
5.7

Time

5.7.1Telling the Time5.7.2Time of the Year5.7.3A Day, The Year5.7.4Expressions: The Past5.7.5Expressions: The Present5.7.6Expressions: The Future5.7.7Time Expressions
6

Common Tenses

6.1

Present Tense

6.1.1Regular ER Verbs6.1.2Regular IR Verbs6.1.3Regular RE Verbs6.1.4Reflexive Verbs6.1.5Irregular ER Verbs (1/2)6.1.6Irregular ER Verbs (2/2)6.1.7Irregular IR Verbs (1/2)6.1.8Irregular IR Verbs (2/2)6.1.9Irregular RE Verbs (1/3)6.1.10Irregular RE Verbs (2/3)6.1.11Irregular RE Verbs (3/3)6.1.12Present Participle (1/2)6.1.13Present Participle (2/2)6.1.14Irregular Present Participles6.1.15Avoir & Etre
6.2

Perfect Tense

6.2.1Avoir (1/2)6.2.2Avoir (2/2)6.2.3Irregular Past Participles (1/2)6.2.4Irregular Past Participles (2/2)6.2.5Être ER Verbs6.2.6Être IR & RE Verbs6.2.7Irregular Être6.2.8Perfect Infinitive
6.3

Imperfect tense

6.3.1Regular ER Verbs6.3.2Regular IR Verbs6.3.3Regular RE Verbs6.3.4Irregular ER Verbs6.3.5Irregular IR Verbs6.3.6Irregular RE Verbs6.3.7Être
6.4

Imperfect vs Perfect

6.4.1Which One to Use?
6.5

Future Tense

6.5.1Regular ER Verbs6.5.2Regular IR Verbs6.5.3Regular RE Verbs6.5.4Immediate future6.5.5Irregulars (1/2)6.5.6Irregulars (2/2)
7

Advanced Tenses

7.1

Conditional Tense

7.1.1Regular ER Verbs7.1.2Regular IR Verbs7.1.3Regular IR Verbs7.1.4Irregulars (1/2)7.1.5Irregulars (2/2)
7.2

Pluperfect Tense

7.2.1Avoir (1/2)7.2.2Avoir (2/2)7.2.3Être ER7.2.4Être IR & RE7.2.5Irregular Être
7.3

Present Subjunctive

7.3.1Regular Verbs (1/2)7.3.2Regular Verbs (2/2)7.3.3Irregulars (1/2)7.3.4Irregulars (2/2)7.3.5Using the Subjunctive7.3.6Imperative
8

Extra Grammar

8.1

The Passive Voice

8.1.1Être (1/6)8.1.2Être (2/6)8.1.3Être (3/6)8.1.4Être (4/6)8.1.5Être (5/6)8.1.6Être (6/6)8.1.7Avoiding the Passive
8.2

Pronouns

8.2.1Personal Pronouns (1/2)8.2.2Personal Pronouns (2/2)8.2.3Reflexive Pronouns8.2.4Indefinite Pronouns8.2.5Emphatic Pronouns8.2.6Relative Pronouns8.2.7Ça, Cela, Celui8.2.8Demonstrative Pronouns8.2.9Possessive Pronouns
8.3

Asking Questions

8.3.1Question Words (1/2)8.3.2Question Words (2/2)
8.4

Nouns

8.4.1The, A8.4.2Some8.4.3Masculine8.4.4Feminine (1/2)8.4.5Feminine (2/2)8.4.6Plurals8.4.7Irregular Plurals
8.5

Prepositions

8.5.1Prepositions (1/3)8.5.2Prepositions (2/3)8.5.3Prepositions (3/3)8.5.4Phrases
8.6

Adverbs

8.6.1Forming an Adverb8.6.2Good, Badly, Fast
8.7

Quantifiers & Intensifiers

8.7.1A Lot, Enough, Very
8.8

Adjectives

8.8.1Agreement (1/3)8.8.2Agreement (2/3)8.8.3Agreement (3/3)8.8.4Position (1/2)8.8.5Position (2/2)8.8.6Comparative8.8.7Superlative8.8.8Good, Better, Best8.8.9Demonstrative8.8.10Indefinite
8.9

Negative

8.9.1Negatives (1/2)8.9.2Negatives (2/2)
8.10

Conjunctions

8.10.1To Make Sentences Longer8.10.2To Add Extra Information
8.11

Miscellaneous

8.11.1Abbreviations

Practice questions on Irregular IR Verbs (1/2)

Can you answer these? Test yourself with free interactive practice on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.

  1. 1
    How do you say 'we sleep' in French?Multiple choice
  2. 2
    How do you say 'they lie' in French?Multiple choice
  3. 3
    How do you say 'you open' in French?Multiple choice
  4. 4
    How do you say 'they open' in French?Multiple choice
  5. 5
    Comment dirais- tu 'elles tiennent' en anglais?Multiple choice
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Irregular ER Verbs (2/2)

Irregular IR Verbs (2/2)