French · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "finir" in French?

fee-NEER — two pure "ee" vowels and a fully pronounced throat "r" at the end.

finir /fi.niʁ/

fi-NIR, weight on the second syllable. "Finir" is the model verb for the second regular conjugation, the one whose plural forms insert "-iss-": nous finissons, vous finissez.

Listen: finir

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Sound it out

fi An "f" plus a tense, pure "ee". Not the lax "ih" of English "finish".

nir An "n", another pure "ee", then a uvular "r". This is the -ir infinitive ending, so the "r" is always sounded.

Hear it in a sentence

J'ai fini mes devoirs.

I've finished my homework.

Listen: J'ai fini mes devoirs.

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"J'ai fini mes devoirs" is the passé composé, built with "avoir" plus the past participle "fini" — which drops the infinitive's "r" entirely and ends in a bare "ee". "Mes devoirs" makes no liaison because "devoirs" starts with a consonant, and the plural "s" is silent. "Devoirs" means homework, from the verb meaning "to owe".

Where English speakers slip

English "finish" and "finite" both supply the wrong vowel — a lax "ih" or a diphthong "eye". French wants a clean "ee" in both syllables. Then the ending: learners who have absorbed the -er rule drop the "r" and say "fee-NEE", which is actually the past participle "fini". The infinitive keeps the "r", and that one sound distinguishes "to finish" from "finished".