revision des temps grammaticaux

Formation and Uses of Some Tenses in French

futur proche \| Imparfait \| futur simple \| conditionnel simple \| présent du subjonctif \| passé simple \| passé composé plus-que-parfait \| futur antérieur \| passé du conditionnel \| passé du subjonctif \| impératif \| links

	*A. Simple Present -- Indicative (le présent)*
		1. Formation:
			a.	Drop the er, ir or re of the infinitive to obtain the stem: *donn- (er), fin- (ir) rend*- (re).
			b.	Add the following endings to the stem of the er verbs: e, es, e; *ons, ez, ent* -- thus obtaining: *donne, donnes, donne; donnons, donnez, donnent*.
			c.	Add the following endings to the stem of the regular ir verbs (not: servir, partir sortir, dormir, etc.): is, is, it; issons, issez, issent -- thus obtaining: finis, finis, finit; finissons, finissez, finissent.
			d.	Add to the stem of the re verbs: s, s, - ; ons, ez, ent -- thus obtaining: rends, rends, rend; rendons, rendez, rendent.

		2. Use:
				To describe a state or action taking place or existing contemporaneously with the utterance in which the present tense is used, or to express a general truth or regularly occurring action (which is still being repeated).
				Je donne would correspond to the following forms in English: *I give, I do give, I am giving. Examples: Je finis ma leçon tous les jours à cinq heures. Le soleil n'est pas une planète. Je ne peux pas sortir, parce que je travaille maintenant*.

	*B. Futur Proche* -- Indicative (Present Tense)**
		1. Formation:
				Use the appropriate conjugated form of *aller* (present tense) and add to it the infinitive that expresses the action described.

		2. Use:
				The futur proche is not properly speaking a distinct tense, but is rather a special present tense construction used -- especially in conversation -- to express an action that is to occur at some point in the future (not necessarily even the immediate future). It corresponds exactly in use to its English equivalent construction. Elle va me conduire à la gare would be rendered in English as She is going to drive me to the station. Examples: Je vais le faire demain. *Elle va écrire la lettre tout de suite*.

	*C. Imperfect -- Indicative (l'imparfait)*
		1. Formation:
				The endings: ais, ais, ait; ions, iez, aient are added to the imperfect stem which is found by dropping the ons ending from the first-person plural of the present indicative (see A.1. b, c., d. donn-, finiss-, rend-). This formula will work for all verbs but être, whose stem is irregular (ét). Verbs of the first conjugation, er verbs, that would have 'g' or 'c' as the final letter of the imperfect stem require the inclusion of an 'e' (for 'g') and a cedilla (for 'c') before the imperfect endings are added for all imperfect conjugated forms except the first and second persons plural. This measure maintains the softness of the consonant before 'a' and 'o'. Examples: mangeais, mangeais, mangeait; mangions, mangiez, mangeaient; commençais, commençais, commençait; commencions, commenciez, commençaient.

		2. Use:
			a.	To describe an action habitually repeated in the past. Example: Il mangeait toujours dans le même restaurant.
			b.	For general description. Example: Leur maison était très belle.
			c.	To provide a context by which or within which another past action is situated. Example: Je lisais quand elle est entrée.
			d.	For indirect discourse. Example: Paul a dit qu'il n'aimait pas les Allemands.
				There is no single English tense that corresponds by itself to the French imperfect. Normally, some form of a past tense or a "used to ..." or "would ..." construction will suffice to translate an imperfect verb. Here is how each of the examples could be translated:
			a.'	He used to eat always in the same restaurant. / He would always eat in the same restaurant.
			b.'	Their home was very beautiful.
			c.'	I was reading when she came in.
			d.'	Paul said he did not like the Germans.
				[timeline with imperfect & passé composé ]
	*D. Simple Future -- Indicative (le futur simple)*
		1. Formation:
			a.	The stem for the future tense is for most verbs the infinitive (donner, finir, rendre). In the case of re verbs, the 'e' must be deleted before adding the future endings. Many verbs, unfortunately, have irregular future stems. These must simply be memorized.
			b.	The endings to be added to the future stem are: ai, as, a; ons, ez, ont -- giving, for example: donnerai, donneras, donnera; donnerons, donnerez, donneront ; finirai, finiras, finira; finirons, finirez, finiront ; rendrai, rendras, rendra; rendrons, rendrez, rendront.

		2. Use:
				The future is used to describe events or actions to take place at a time after the utterance is made. It corresponds exactly to the English use of the future tense. Example: Elle partira demain (She will leave tomorrow).
				French sentences with a "when-clause" take a future in that clause, if a future is contained in the main clause. This differs from English usage since in the equivalent sentence, a present is preferred in the "when-clause," notwithstanding the future in the main clause. Example: Quand j'aurai deux minutes, je vous apporterai un café (When I have two minutes, I'll bring you a coffee).

	*E. Simple Conditional Tense or Mood (le conditionnel)*
		1. Formation:
			a.	Use the same stem as that of the future tense (see D. 1. a.).
			b.	Add to the conditional stem the endings for the imperfect tense (see C. 1.) -- giving, for example: finirais, finirais, finirait; finirions, finiriez, finiraient.
			c.	The modal verb 'would' is compounded in English with the main verb to form the conditional, whereas in French, the conditional is a simple tense. ('Would' in English does not always correspond to the conditional mood. See 'would' as a tense in the example in C. 2. a.')

		2. Use:
			a.	As a mood, it expresses an action or a state whose fulfillment is dependent upon a condition to materialize. It takes the form of "if X, then Y." Usually, the imperfect occurs in the "if-clause." It corresponds closely to the English use of the conditional mood. Example: Si j'étais riche, j'achèterais un grand bateau.
			b.	As a tense (indicative mood), it expresses in a past context what would have been a future event or state at one time. For this reason, it is sometimes referred to as "the future of the past." Here, too, English and French uses of the condtional are parallel. Example: Je croyais qu'il viendrait ~ I thought he would come.
			c.	Whether mood or tense, There is a use in French not shared by English: to attenuate the strength of an assertion, or to cast doubt on its veracity, or again, to put distance between the assertion and the speaker/author. (This use is even more frequent with the past conditional.) Examples: Il y aurait vingt blessés ~ There are reportedly* twenty wounded. Le voleur aurait tué un policier en fuyant* ~ The thief allegedly* killed a police officer while fleeing*.

	*F. Simple Present -- Subjunctive (le subjonctif* )**
		1. Formation:
			a.	The stem is derived from the third-person plural of the present indicative, thus for regular verbs: donn (> ils donnent), finiss (> ils finissent), rend (> ils rendent).
			b.	There are many irregular stems for the subjunctive. Examples: faire: fass, savoir: sach. (Often, the passé simple and the present subjunctive share the same stem. See G. 1. b.)
			c.	The endings to be added to the stem are: e, es, e; ions, iez, *ent.-- thus obtaining: donne, donnes, donne; donnions, donniez, donnent* ; finisse, finisses, finisse; finissions, finissiez, finissent ; rende, rendes, rende; rendions, rendiez, rendent.

		2. Use:
			a.	In principle, the subjunctive mood suggests that the statement of which the verb is part is not descriptive or indicative of reality. It can be thought of as relating to possibility, at most, doubt, opinion, bias and emotion, at the least, as belonging to a subjective perception or a clouded judgment that cannot be said to be reliable as to the actual state of things.
			b.	In practice, the subjunctive mood tends to be used by convention primarily, especially in dependent clauses introduced by expressions of possibility, doubt, emotion on the part of the speaker/author.

	*G. Passé Simple* -- Indicative**
		1. Formation:
			a.	Drop the er of the infinitive of er verbs to obtain the stem: *donn*- .
			b.	To the stem of er verbs, the following endings are added: ai, as, a; âmes, âtes, èrent -- thus obtaining: donnai, donnas, donna; donnâmes, donnâtes, donnèrent.
			c.	Drop the ir and re of the infinitive of most ir and re verbs to obtain the stem: fin- , rend-
			d.	To the stem of most ir and re verbs, the following endings are added: is, is, it; îmes, îtes, irent -- thus obtaing: finis, finis, finit; finîmes, finîtes, finirent ; rendis, rendis, rendit; rendîmes, rendîtes, rendirent.
			e.	For the many verbs, the formation derives from the past participle (see H. 1. c. ). Examples: dormir, dormi > dormis, dormis, dormit, dormîmes, dormîtes, dormirent ; sourire, souri > souris, souris, sourit; sourîmes, sourîtes, sourirent.

		2. Use:
				To relate unique events that have been completed, are viewed as "over and done with" in the past. (In this regard, it expresses past events that have been completed in parallel fashion to the passé composé. See H. 1.) The passé simple is a literary preterite, and may seldom be encountered outside formal writing. In conversational French, the passé composé is almost always preferred. Example: Il écrivit dès son retour. ~ Il a écrit dès son retour.
				The passé simple may distinguish itself from the passé composé, in that the event given in the passé simple is seen to have less significance for the present moment, according to some grammarians. Example: César envahit la Gaule ~ César a envahi la Gaule.
				[timeline with passé simple]
	*H. Passé Composé* -- Indicative**
		1. Formation:
			a.	For most verbs in French, use the present tense indicative of avoir (ai, as, a; avons, avez, ont) plus the past participle of the main verb.
			b.	Certain verbs (a minority), usually but not always intransitive verbs of motion or change in state of being, require that the present tense of être (suis, es, est; sommes, êtes, sont) be used instead of avoir (always with: *aller, arriver, entrer, devenir, partir, rester, rentrer, retourner, venir, tomber, mourir, and all reflexive/pronominal verbs -- sometimes with: passer, monter, descendre, sortir* -- depending on whether the verb is used transitively or intransitively, i.e., takes a direct object or not). In addition, the past participle must agree in gender and number with its subject. (For a list of every-day verbs requiring être, click here.)
			c.	The past participles of regular verbs can be obtained by adding to the same verb stem that is used for the formation of the present tense (see A.1.a.) the following set of endings: é for er verbs, i for ir verbs, u for re verbs -- thus giving, for example: donné, fini, rendu.

		2. Use:
				To relate unique events that have been completed, are viewed as "over and done with" in the past. It corresponds to the English present perfect or simple past. *Tu as écouté ce disque?* could be rendered into English as: You listened to this record? or Have you listened to this record? or -- for that matter -- even Did you listen to this record? in the emphatic past. Examples: César a envahi la Gaule. Jean a parlé avec son prof. La voiture s'est arrêtée devant le musée.
				It may also be used for repetitive actions in the past, but only if the time period during which the repeated actions occurred is explicitly indicated. Example: Il est venu me voir tous les jeudis.
				[timeline with imperfect & passé composé ]
	*I. Pluperfect -- Indicative (le plus-que-parfait)*
		1. Formation:
			a.	For most verbs in French, use the imperfect tense of avoir (avais, avais, avait; avions, aviez, avaient) plus the past participle of the verb that is being used in the pluperfect.
			b.	Certain verbs (a minority), usually but not always intransitive verbs of motion or change in state of being, require that the imperfect tense of être (étais, étais, était; étions, étiez, étaient) be used instead of avoir (see H. 1. a-c).
			c.	There is only one past participle for all compound tenses in French. See H. 1. c. concerning the form it takes for regular verbs.

		2. Use:
				Just as the passé composé relates unique events that have been completed, are viewed as "over and done with" in the past, so, too, does the pluperfect. It corresponds to the English pluperfect. With French and English, the pluperfect indicates that an action takes place in a remote past, or, at least, that an action takes place before another past action or state. Tu avais écouté ce disque avant de le condamner ? could be rendered into English as: Had you listened to this record before condemning it? Example: Ils avaient déjà fini leurs devoirs, quand le professeur est entré dans la salle.
				[timeline with passé composé & passé simple]
	*J. Future Perfect -- Indicative (le futur antérieur)*
		1. Formation:
			a.	For most verbs in French, use the future tense of avoir (see D. 1. a. & b.; aurai, auras, aura; aurons, aurez, auront) plus the past participle of the verb that is being used in the future perfect tense.
			b.	Certain verbs (a minority), usually but not always intransitive verbs of motion or change in state of being, require that the future tense of être (serai, seras, sera; serons, serez, seront) be used instead of avoir (see H. 1. a-c).
			c.	There is only one past participle for all compound tenses in French. See H. 1. c. concerning the form it takes for regular verbs.

		2. Use:
				The future perfect is used to express a future action that will be carried out prior to another, subsequent action. Example: Marie sera partie quand tu arriveras.
				[timeline with future perfect ]
	*K. Past Conditional Mood (le passé du conditionnel)*
		1. Formation:
			a.	For most verbs in French, use the present conditional of avoir (see E. 1. a.; aurais, aurais, aurait; aurions, auriez, auraient) plus the past participle of the verb that is being used in the past conditional tense.
			b.	Certain verbs (a minority), usually but not always intransitive verbs of motion or change in state of being, require that the present conditional form of être (serais, serais, serait; serions, seriez, seraient) be used instead of avoir (see H. 1. a-c).
			c.	There is only one past participle for all compound tenses in French. See H. 1. c. concerning the form it takes for regular verbs.

		2. Use:
			a.	As a mood, it expresses an action or a state whose fulfillment had been -- but is no longer -- dependent upon a condition to materialize. It takes the form of "if X had been the case, then Y would have resulted." Usually, the pluperfect occurs in the "if-clause." It corresponds closely to the English use of the past conditional mood, and expresses counterfactual claims. Example: Si j'avais su, je ne serais pas venu.
			b.	As with the present conditional, there is a use in French not shared by English: to attenuate the strength of an assertion, or to cast doubt on its veracity, or again, to put distance between the assertion and the speaker/author. Examples: Selon notre spécialiste, Moïse n'aurait pas écrit le Pentateuch ~ According to our expert, Moses might not have written the Pentateuch; Le voleur aurait tué un policier en fuyant ~ The thief allegedly* killed a police officer while fleeing*.

	*L. Past Subjunctive Mood (le passé du subjonctif)*
		1. Formation:
			a.	For most verbs in French, use the present subjunctive of avoir (aie, aies, ait; ayons, ayez, aient) plus the past participle of the verb that is being used in the past subjunctive tense.
			b.	Certain verbs (a minority), usually but not always intransitive verbs of motion or change in state of being, require that the present subjunctive of être (sois, sois, soit; soyons, soyez, soient) be used instead of avoir.
			c.	There is only one past participle for all compound tenses in French. See H. 1. c. concerning the form it takes for regular verbs.

		2. Use:
				Sometimes used in conversation, the past subjunctive occurs primarily when the passé composé would be appropriate for a past situation or event, were it not for the requirement of the subjunctive in the dependent clause. Example: Il est possible qu'elle soit arrivée hier ~ Il est probable qu'elle est arrivée hier.

	*M. Imperative Mood (l'impératif)*
		1. Formation:
			a.	The imperative has only three forms; it does not have a full conjugation of six logical subjects, as is the case with the other tenses above.
			b.	Take the present tense indicative forms (see A. 1. a.-d.) corresponding to tu, nous and vous of er, ir and re verbs -- thus obtaining: tu donnes, nous donnons, vous donnez ; tu finis, nous finissons, vous finissez ; tu rends, nous rendons, vous rendez.
			c.	Eliminate the subject pronouns, yielding: donnes, donnons, donnez ; finis, finissons, finissez ; rends, rendons, rendez.
			d.	For er verbs only the second-person familiar form loses the 's', hence: donne, rather than donnes.
			e.	Often the imperative of irregular verbs parallels the present subjunctive (see F 1.a.-c.). Examples: que tu sois . . . ~ Sois sage ! ; que tu aies ... ~ N'aie pas peur.

		2. Use:
				The imperative is used to issue commands. Examples: Donne le pain à Maman, Donnez-moi ça ! ; Finis tes devoirs, Finissez votre repas ! ; Rends-lui son argent, Rendez mon chapeau. It frequently expresses a proposal or exhortation of an inclusive nature. Examples: Donnons-lui notre numéro de téléphone, Ne Finissons pas notre discution !, Rendons visite à Robert.

		Links to other Handouts
				View on a single screen all French tenses
				The imperative (command forms)
				Pronominal (reflexive) verbs
				Verbs taking être in compound tenses
				Tenses that work together in if-then statements
				Rules for agreement of past participles
				Negation
				Subjunctive mood
				Subjunctive exercise
				Concordance des temps
				PowerPoint presentations of conjugations
				PowerPoint interactive conjugations
				Graphic timelines 1, 2, 3

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