All About 'Dormir,' an Irregular French Verb Like 'Partir,' 'Sortir'

Dormir ("to sleep") is a very common, irregular -ir verb in the French language. The verb is part of an important set of irregular -ir verbs that share conjugation patterns.

Within irregular -ir verbs, two groups exhibit similar characteristics and conjugation patterns. Then there is a final, large category of extremely irregular -ir verbs that follow no pattern.

Dormir lies in the first group of irregular -ir verbs that display a pattern. It includes dormir, partir, sortir, sentir, servir, mentir, and all their derivatives, such as endormir. 

Below is a comparison chart showing present-tense conjugations of this group. The side-by-side comparison illustrates that the conjugations are identical. Generally speaking, most French verbs ending in -mir, -tir, or -vir are conjugated this way. 

Scroll down to the to bottom to see a full set of dormir's simple conjugations; the compound tenses consist of a form of the auxiliary verb avoir with the past participle dormi.

Side-by-Side Comparison of Present-Tense Conjugations

	Dormir (to sleep)	Sortir (to go out)	Partir (to leave)
	Je dors sur un matelas dur. I sleep on a hard mattress.	Je sors tous les soirs. I go out every night.	Je pars à midi. I'm leaving at noon.
	Dormez-vous d'un sommeil léger ? Do you sleep lightly?	Sortez-vous maintenant? Are you going out now?	Partez-vous bientôt? Are you leaving soon?
je	dors	sors	part
tu	dors	sors	pars
il	dort	sort	part
nous	dormons	sortons	partons
vous	dormez	sortez	partons
ils	dorment	sortent	partent

Expressions With 'Dormir'

• avoir envie de dormir > to feel sleepy / to feel like sleeping
• dormir d'un sommeil profond / lourd / de plomb > to be a heavy sleeper / to be fast asleep, to be sound asleep, to be in a deep sleep
• dormir à poings fermés > to be fast asleep, to be sleeping like a baby
• dormir comme un ange > to be sound asleep / to sleep like a baby
• dormir comme une bûche / un loir / une marmotte / une souche / un sabot > to sleep like a log
• Tu dors debout. > You can't (even) keep awake. / You are dead on your feet.
• Tu peux dormir sur tes deux oreilles. > There's no reason for you to worry, you can sleep [soundly] at night.
• Je ne dors que d'un œil. > I sleep with one eye open. / I can hardly sleep. / I hardly get a wink of sleep.
• Qui dort dîne. (proverbe) >  He who sleeps forgets his hunger.
• Ils ont laissé dormir le projet. > They left the project on the back burner.
• Ce n'est pas le moment de dormir ! > This is the moment for action. / Now's the time for action ! 

SIMPLE CONJUGATIONS OF THE IRREGULAR FRENCH VERB 'DORMIR"

	Present	Future	Imperfect	Present participle
je	dors	dormirai	dormais	dormant
tu	dors	dormiras	dormais
il	dort	dormira	dormait	Passé composé
nous	dormons	dormirons	dormions	Auxiliary verb avoir
vous	dormez	dormirez	dormiez	Past participle dormi
ils	dorment	dormiront	dormaient
	Subjunctive	Conditional	Passé simple	Imperfect subjunctive
je	dorme	dormirais	dormis	dormisse
tu	dormes	dormirais	dormis	dormisses
il	dorme	dormirait	dormit	dormît
nous	dormions	dormirions	dormîmes	dormissions
vous	dormiez	dormiriez	dormîtes	dormissiez
ils	dorment	dormiraient	dormirent	dormissent

	Imperative
(tu)	dors
(nous)	dormons
(vous)	dormez

Additional Resources

'Dormir' all tenses
Using 'Sortir'
'Partir' all tenses
Using 'Partir'
'Partir' vs. 'Sortir'