Rire is the verb to laugh, and despite its tiny three-letter infinitive it is one of the more surprising verbs in the French paradigm. Two facts make it memorable: the past participle is the bare stem ri (no agreement, ever), and the nous/vous forms of the imparfait and subjonctif produce the orthographically startling sequences riions and riiez — yes, with two i's in a row. They look like typos but they are correct, and this page explains why.
Rire belongs to the 3e groupe (irregular). It is intransitive and takes avoir in compound tenses. Its only common compound is sourire (to smile), which conjugates identically. This page is the full reference: every paradigm, the principal uses, the laughter idioms (mourir de rire, pour rire, rire jaune), and the contrast with English "laugh."
The conjugation pattern
The stem is ri-. Endings attach directly to it. The trick is that several endings already begin with i- (-ions, -iez in imparfait and subjonctif), so they stack onto the stem and produce the double-i you must learn to write without flinching.
Présent de l'indicatif
| Person | Form | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| je | ris | /ʁi/ |
| tu | ris | /ʁi/ |
| il / elle / on | rit | /ʁi/ |
| nous | rions | /ʁjɔ̃/ |
| vous | riez | /ʁje/ |
| ils / elles | rient | /ʁi/ |
All four singular forms — ris, ris, rit, rient — are pronounced identically: /ʁi/. The endings are silent. Only the nous and vous forms break the pattern, where the i glides into the following vowel and produces /ʁjɔ̃/, /ʁje/.
Je ris à chaque fois que je le revois — il a un humour incroyable.
I laugh every time I see him again — he has incredible humor.
Tu ris de moi ?
Are you laughing at me?
On rit beaucoup avec elle.
We laugh a lot with her.
Imparfait
The imparfait is built on the nous stem (ri-, since nous rions drops -ons) plus the standard imparfait endings -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. Here is where the double i enters: the stem already ends in i, and the nous/vous endings begin with i.
| Person | Form | Note |
|---|---|---|
| je | riais | /ʁjɛ/ |
| tu | riais | /ʁjɛ/ |
| il / elle / on | riait | /ʁjɛ/ |
| nous | riions | double i — /ʁi.jɔ̃/ |
| vous | riiez | double i — /ʁi.je/ |
| ils / elles | riaient | /ʁjɛ/ |
Riions and riiez are not typos. The first i belongs to the stem (ri-), the second i belongs to the ending (-ions, -iez). Both are pronounced — there is an audible separation between the syllables, /ʁi.jɔ̃/, distinguishing imparfait nous riions from present nous rions (one syllable, /ʁjɔ̃/). Native speakers feel the distinction; learners must train their ear and pen.
On riait tellement qu'on ne pouvait plus parler.
We were laughing so hard we couldn't speak anymore.
Quand nous étions enfants, nous riions de rien.
When we were children, we used to laugh at nothing.
Vous riiez tous, et moi je ne comprenais pas la blague.
You were all laughing, and I didn't get the joke.
Passé simple (literary)
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | ris |
| tu | ris |
| il / elle / on | rit |
| nous | rîmes |
| vous | rîtes |
| ils / elles | rirent |
Note the circumflex on rîmes and rîtes — non-negotiable. The 1st and 3rd singular forms (je ris, il rit) are spelled identically to the present indicative; only context disambiguates. Il rit aux éclats could in isolation be either present or passé simple, but in literary narrative it is always read as the simple past.
Il rit aux éclats en lisant la lettre.
He burst out laughing as he read the letter. (literary)
Futur simple
The futur stem is rir- (the full infinitive minus the final -e — except rire has no final -e to drop, so the stem is the full infinitive). Standard endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | rirai |
| tu | riras |
| il / elle / on | rira |
| nous | rirons |
| vous | rirez |
| ils / elles | riront |
Tu riras quand je te raconterai la suite.
You'll laugh when I tell you the rest.
On en rira plus tard, je te le promets.
We'll laugh about it later, I promise.
Conditionnel présent
Same stem rir-, with imparfait endings.
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| je | rirais |
| tu | rirais |
| il / elle / on | rirait |
| nous | ririons |
| vous | ririez |
| ils / elles | riraient |
Je rirais bien si la situation n'était pas si triste.
I'd laugh if the situation weren't so sad.
Subjonctif présent
The subjonctif uses the ils stem of the present (ri-, from ils rient) plus the subjonctif endings -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez, -ent. Same double-i phenomenon as the imparfait.
| Person | Form | Note |
|---|---|---|
| (que) je | rie | /ʁi/ |
| (que) tu | ries | /ʁi/ |
| (qu')il / elle / on | rie | /ʁi/ |
| (que) nous | riions | double i — /ʁi.jɔ̃/ |
| (que) vous | riiez | double i — /ʁi.je/ |
| (qu')ils / elles | rient | /ʁi/ |
The subjonctif nous/vous are spelled exactly like the imparfait nous/vous — both are riions and riiez. Context determines mood: a que trigger (il faut que, je veux que) selects the subjunctive reading.
Il faut qu'on rie de temps en temps, sinon la vie est insupportable.
We need to laugh from time to time, otherwise life is unbearable.
J'aimerais que vous riiez plus souvent.
I'd like you to laugh more often.
Impératif
| Person | Form |
|---|---|
| (tu) | ris |
| (nous) | rions |
| (vous) | riez |
Ris un peu, ce n'est pas si grave !
Laugh a little, it's not that bad!
Rions de nous-mêmes, pour une fois.
Let's laugh at ourselves, for once.
Participles and gérondif
- Participe passé: ri — invariable. Rire is intransitive, so no direct object can ever precede the participle, and consequently no agreement is possible.
- Participe présent: riant
- Gérondif: en riant
Il a raconté l'histoire en riant aux larmes.
He told the story laughing till he cried.
Une enfant riant aux éclats, c'est la plus belle des musiques.
A child laughing out loud is the most beautiful music there is.
Compound tenses (with avoir)
Rire takes avoir in all compound tenses, and the participle ri never agrees — there is no possible direct object for rire (one laughs de something, never laughs something). The de construction means even when there is an explicit object, it is grammatically a complement, not a direct object.
Passé composé
avoir (présent) + ri
On a beaucoup ri hier soir au restaurant.
We laughed a lot last night at the restaurant.
J'ai ri jusqu'aux larmes en regardant ce film.
I laughed until I cried watching that film.
Plus-que-parfait
avoir (imparfait) + ri
Je n'avais jamais autant ri de ma vie.
I had never laughed so much in my life.
Futur antérieur
avoir (futur) + ri
Quand tu auras lu ce livre, tu auras bien ri, je te garantis.
By the time you've finished this book, you'll have had a good laugh, I guarantee it.
Conditionnel passé
avoir (conditionnel) + ri
J'aurais ri si la blague n'avait pas été aussi méchante.
I would have laughed if the joke hadn't been so mean.
Major uses
1. To laugh (the core meaning)
Elle rit toujours à ses propres blagues.
She always laughs at her own jokes.
Pourquoi tu ris ? J'ai dit quelque chose de drôle ?
Why are you laughing? Did I say something funny?
2. Rire de quelqu'un / quelque chose — to laugh at, to make fun of
The preposition is de, never à and never absent. Rire de often carries a slightly mocking edge — laughing at someone, not just with them.
Ils rient toujours de moi à cause de mon accent.
They're always making fun of me because of my accent.
On a ri de cette idée pendant des années, et maintenant tout le monde la prend au sérieux.
People laughed at that idea for years, and now everyone takes it seriously.
3. Faire rire — to make laugh
The causative faire + infinitive is the standard way to say "to make someone laugh."
Il me fait toujours rire avec ses imitations.
He always makes me laugh with his impressions.
Cette comédienne fait rire toute la France.
That comedian makes all of France laugh.
4. Pour rire — as a joke, jokingly
A fixed adverbial expression. Use it to soften something that might be taken seriously.
Je l'ai dit pour rire, ne le prends pas mal.
I said it as a joke, don't take it badly.
C'était une menace pour rire, évidemment.
It was a joking threat, obviously.
High-frequency idioms
The French built dozens of expressions around rire. The most useful:
- mourir de rire — to die laughing (the classic hyperbole; also abbreviated to MDR in texting, the French equivalent of LOL)
- éclater de rire — to burst out laughing
- rire aux éclats — to laugh out loud, peals of laughter
- rire aux larmes — to laugh until you cry
- rire jaune — to laugh awkwardly, force a laugh (literally "to laugh yellow" — a fake or uncomfortable laugh)
- rire sous cape — to laugh up one's sleeve, snicker quietly
- avoir le fou rire — to have the giggles (uncontrolled laughter)
- rira bien qui rira le dernier — he who laughs last laughs best (proverb)
- ce n'est pas pour rire — this is no joke / I'm serious
- plus on est de fous, plus on rit — the more the merrier (literally "the more crazy people, the more we laugh")
Je suis morte de rire en lisant ses messages.
I'm dying of laughter reading her messages.
Quand il a vu ma tête, il a éclaté de rire.
When he saw my face, he burst out laughing.
Elle a ri jaune quand on a fait la blague sur son ex.
She gave an awkward laugh when we made the joke about her ex.
On a eu le fou rire en pleine réunion, c'était la honte.
We got the giggles in the middle of the meeting, it was embarrassing.
Sourire — to smile
Sourire (= sou- + rire) conjugates exactly like rire: je souris, tu souris, il sourit, nous sourions, vous souriez, ils sourient. Imparfait nous souriions, vous souriiez — same double i. Past participle souri, also invariable.
Elle sourit à tout le monde, c'est dans sa nature.
She smiles at everyone, it's just her nature.
Le bébé a souri pour la première fois ce matin.
The baby smiled for the first time this morning.
Nous souriions sur la photo, mais c'était forcé.
We were smiling in the photo, but it was forced.
Comparison with English
Three friction points:
English "laugh at" maps to rire de, not rire à. The preposition à would be a transfer error from English. Always rire de quelqu'un. Se moquer de is a stronger synonym ("to mock").
English distinguishes "laugh" from "smile" with two unrelated verbs; French uses one root. Rire and sourire share the same stem and conjugate identically. Once you know rire, you know sourire.
English "I have laughed" maps to j'ai ri (no agreement). Don't try to make the participle agree — rire is intransitive, agreement is structurally impossible. Even Marie a ri uses bare ri, not rie.
Common Mistakes
Mistake 1: Forgetting the double i in imparfait/subjonctif nous and vous.
❌ Quand nous étions petits, nous rions tout le temps.
Wrong tense — present rions can't mean past. The imparfait nous form is riions, with two i's.
✅ Quand nous étions petits, nous riions tout le temps.
When we were little, we used to laugh all the time.
Mistake 2: Using à instead of de after rire.
❌ Ne ris pas à moi, je suis sérieux.
Wrong preposition — rire takes de, not à.
✅ Ne ris pas de moi, je suis sérieux.
Don't laugh at me, I'm serious.
Mistake 3: Trying to make the past participle agree.
❌ Marie a rie pendant deux heures.
Wrong — rire is intransitive, the participle ri never agrees.
✅ Marie a ri pendant deux heures.
Marie laughed for two hours.
Mistake 4: Using être in compound tenses.
❌ Je suis ri très fort.
Wrong — rire takes avoir, not être, despite being intransitive.
✅ J'ai ri très fort.
I laughed very hard.
Mistake 5: Translating "laugh out loud" too literally.
❌ J'ai ri à voix haute.
Awkward calque — French uses idiomatic expressions for this.
✅ J'ai ri aux éclats.
I laughed out loud.
Key takeaways
Rire means to laugh and is a 3e-groupe irregular -re verb. The stem is ri-, present singular forms (ris, ris, rit, rient) are all pronounced /ʁi/. The crucial orthographic feature is the double i in nous riions and vous riiez in both imparfait and subjonctif — the first i is the stem, the second is the ending.
Rire takes avoir in compound tenses and the participle ri is always invariable — the verb is intransitive, so agreement is impossible. The construction is rire de quelqu'un / quelque chose (laugh at), with de, never à. Sourire (to smile) is its perfect twin — same conjugation, same patterns.
The verb anchors a network of laughter idioms: mourir de rire (and its texting abbreviation MDR), éclater de rire, rire aux éclats, rire jaune, avoir le fou rire, pour rire. Master these and you will sound natural the moment something is funny.
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