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FRENCH VERB

se terminer

to end

  • Regular -er verb
  • Past participle: terminé
  • Present participle: se terminant

Conjugation

Tap any form to hear it. The part that changes is in colour.

Present

Présent · now, habits and facts

  1. je I end
  2. tu you end
  3. il, elle, on he/she ends
  4. nous we end
  5. vous you end
  6. ils, elles they end

Past

Passé composé · finished actions

  1. je I ended
  2. tu you ended
  3. il, elle, on he/she ended
  4. nous we ended
  5. vous you ended
  6. ils, elles they ended

Imperfect

Imparfait · “used to” and “was …ing”

  1. je I used to end
  2. tu you used to end
  3. il, elle, on he/she used to end
  4. nous we used to end
  5. vous you used to end
  6. ils, elles they used to end

Future

Futur simple · plans; in speech, “je vais parler” is just as common

  1. je I will end
  2. tu you will end
  3. il, elle, on he/she will end
  4. nous we will end
  5. vous you will end
  6. ils, elles they will end

Conditional

Conditionnel · “would”, polite requests

  1. je I would end
  2. tu you would end
  3. il, elle, on he/she would end
  4. nous we would end
  5. vous you would end
  6. ils, elles they would end

Present subjunctive

Subjonctif présent · wishes, doubts, “il faut que …”

  1. je (that) I end
  2. tu (that) you end
  3. il, elle, on (that) he/she end
  4. nous (that) we end
  5. vous (that) you end
  6. ils, elles (that) they end

How to use se terminer

One sentence for each tense, the way people say it.

  1. Present

    Le marché se termine vers treize heures.

    The market ends around one.

  2. Past

    La réunion s'est terminée plus tôt que prévu.

    The meeting ended earlier than planned.

  3. Imperfect

    Quand j'étais petit, l'école se terminait à seize heures trente.

    When I was little, school ended at half past four.

  4. Future

    Mon contrat se terminera fin juin.

    My contract will end at the end of June.

  5. Conditional

    Avec moins de questions, la visite se terminerait avant midi.

    With fewer questions, the tour would end before noon.

  6. Present subjunctive

    J'attends que le film se termine pour appeler.

    I'm waiting for the film to end before calling.

Good to know

  • Se terminer is for a thing that ends by itself, le film se termine; terminer quelque chose is to finish it.
  • Finir is the everyday word; se terminer is a little more formal, for a contract, a meeting, a season.

Where you hear se terminer

The lessons that teach a form of it, and how they say it.

French · Advanced Level 1

  • Mon contrat se termine en août. My contract ends in August.
  • La réunion s'est terminée à sept heures. The meeting ended at seven.
  • Le cours se terminera à l'heure. The class will end on time.

French · Advanced Level 3

  • Mon contrat se termine en août. My contract ends in August.
  • La réunion s'est terminée à sept heures. The meeting ended at seven.
  • Le cours se terminera à l'heure. The class will end on time.
7
A Teacher's Contract

Advanced Level 1 · Il se termine en août. Est-ce qu'il sera renouvelé ?

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The Thank-You Letters

Advanced Level 3 · Et on termine comment ?

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The Public Meeting

Fluency Level 2 · Je terminerai par une phrase que j'ai dite à la radio. Une école qui ferme, c'est un village qui s'éteint.

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Verbs like this one

The same pattern, on other verbs: regular -er verb.