TODO : Rewrite the page with better examples, as the page still seems to be confusing.
A note to readers
Hi guys, I hope you like the notes.
Could you provide me feedback on whether the number of conjugation examples were sufficient or not.
let's get one thing clear:
L'Imparfait is used for Past Actions
Introduction
They say practice makes perfect, so how can one of the most common French past tenses be imperfect? In grammatical terms, “perfect” means “complete,” so the French imperfect tense is used to describe an action that is :
- Incomplete
- Ongoing
- Repeated / Habitual
When to use?
L’Imparfait is generally used in this types of sentences:
| Type | ||
|---|---|---|
| incomplete | I was doing my homework, but the lights went out. | Je faisais mes devoirs, mais les lumières se sont éteintes. |
| ongoing | I was doing my homework since afternoon. | Je faisais mes devoirs depuis l’après-midi. |
| habitual / repeated | Every evening, I used to do my homework. | Tous les soirs, je faisais mes devoirs. |
L’imparfait can be used to tell stories and report on past actions, mostly in written contexts.
Identifying L’Imparfait
Identifying where L’imparfait is used in a composition writing will help you make less grammatical mistakes and help boost your scores .
L’imparfait translates to :
- Was / Were + [verb]
- Used to + [verb]
- Would + [verb] (used in Si-cluases)
Below are some specific use cases.
Do Read ThemDescriptions
L’Imparfait is used when we want to describe things in the past which relate to:
- age
- feelings / emotion
- health
- time
- weather
- and more…
Examples:
| Il pleuvait mais elle avait un parapluie. | It was raining but she had an umbrella. |
| Quand j’avais 6 ans, j’étais souvent malade. | When I was 6 years old, I was often sick |
| Quand j’avais 2 ans, je craignais les chiens. | Quand j’avais 6 ans, je craignais les chiens. |
| Hier, je me suis couché tôt car j’etait fatigué | Yesterday I slept early because I was tired. |
Habitual actions or states of being
L’Imparfait can be used to tell actions that are a habit in the past or are repeated. Word that could signify a sort of repeated action are listed below :
TODO : Add more adverbs of time and amount
- chaque + [time period]
- souvent
- [verb in imparfait] + beaucoup
- Tous les jours
Examples :
| L’année dernière, nous allions au ciné chaque vendredi. | Last year, we went to the movies every Friday. |
| Je m’ennuyais souvent. | I was often bored. |
| Je nageais beaucoup quand j’etais jeune | I swam a lot when I was young |
| Tous les jours, il faisait un gâteau avec son amie Florence. | Every day he would bake a cake with his friend Florence. |
Unspecified endings
L’Imparfait can be used to express past actions or states of being with unspecified endings. Let me explain with an example:
| J’allais au parc parce que je voulais me promener. | I was going to the park because I wanted to take a walk. |
In this example, we are unsure whether the subject reached the park or not.
| Quand je travaillais, je m’ennuyais toujours. | When I worked, I was always bored. |
| In the example above, we are unsure whether the subject is working or not. |
Simultaneously actions:
L’Imparfait can be used when there are two or more event that are going on at the same time. Usually in La Passe Compose we talk about one event in a sentence, that is done and completed. With imparfait you can do something like the example below:
Example :
| Je regardais la télé lorsque le téléphone à sonné. | I was watching the television when the telephone rang |
Recounting Events (story-like)
L’Imparfait can be used to recount or narrate past events. It can also be used to for reporting actions done.
Take for example, what your recount would be to the police if you crash your car or what you would say to describe a event that would play out as a story.
| L’homme portait un chapeau et il avait des yeux bleus. | The man wore a hat and he had blue eyes. |
| Ce matin, le soleil brillait et le ciel était bleu. | This morning, the sun was shining and the sky was blue. |
you can also L’Imparfait to describe a person, a property, a comment or an explanation in the past.
| Lucas était un enfant très gourmand. | When Lucas was a kid, he was a big eater. |
Indirect Speech
| Il m’a dit qu’il allait à la banque. | He told me he was going to the bank. |
Most verbs followed by the infinitive
Aller
| J’allais te téléphoner. | I was going to call you. |
Être en train de ( in the process of )
| J’étais en train de rénover le garage. | I was (in the process of) renovating the garage. |
Venir de
| Je venais de rentrer quand tu as appelé. | I had just gotten home when you called. |
Vouloir (polite request)
| Je voulais vous poser une question. | I wanted / I would like to ask you a question. |
French imperfect after si
The imperfect is often used with si, in which case it’s not a past tense. Instead, it expresses something that is unknown or unreal in the present or future.
| 1. | Questions | |
| Elle m’a demandé si j’étais marié. | She asked if I was married.* | |
| 2. | Suggestions | |
| Si on allait au ciné demain ? | How about going to the movies tomorrow? | |
| 3. | Wishes | |
| Si seulement je gagnais au loto ! | If only I won the lottery! | |
| 4. | Comme si | |
| Tu parles comme si tu pouvais prédire l’avenir. | You speak as though you can see the future. | |
| 5. | Si clauses | |
| Si tu avais un emploi, tu pourrais acheter une voiture. | If you had a job, you could buy a car. |
* I know this sounds like it’s in the past, but at the time, it wasn’t. She wanted to know if I was married in the present tense of her asking.
Conjugation Rules
L’imparfait is one of the most simplest tenses to conjugate in. It only has one exception: the verb “être”. Any other verbs will follow the conjugation rules as shown below.
You can check out the conjugation for “Être”linked here.
-
Conjugate the verb in the present tense with the pronoun “nous”.
-
Remove the “-ons” from the end. This will give the stem of the verb.
-
Add the Imparfait endings to the stem:
| Je | -ais |
| Tu | -ais |
| Il / Elle / On | -ait |
| Nous | -ions |
| Vous | -iez |
| Ils / Elles | -aient |
Verbs ending in -GER
Verbs like manger, ranger, arranger, corriger and changer end in “ger”. This verbs have a slightly different conjugation in nous and vous form.
In nous and vous forms, drop the extra “e” at the end before putting the endings.
Here is an example:
Manger - to eat
manger in nous form in present tense → Nous mangeons
Imparfait stem → mange
| | |
| :----------------------: | :----------------------: |
| Je | mangeais |
| Tu | mangeais |
| Il / Elle / On | mangeait |
| Nous | mangions |
| Vous | mangiez |
| Ils / Elles | mangeaient |
Verbs ending in -CER
Verbs like commencer, annoncer, avancer, menacer, lancer end in “cer”. This verbs have a slightly different conjugation in nous and vous form.
In nous and vous forms, replace the extra “ç” at the end before putting the endings for “c”.
Here is an example:
commencer - to begin
manger in nous form in present tense → Nous commençons
Imparfait stem → commenç
| | |
| :----------------------: | :----------------------: |
| Je | commençais |
| Tu | commençais |
| Il / Elle / On | commençait |
| Nous | commencions |
| Vous | commenciez |
| Ils / Elles | commençaient |
Verbs ending in -IER
This is not an actual rule
but more of a word of advice
Verbs that end in “ier” have a double “ii” in nous and vous form. this is not an exception just something to take note of.
Some verbs that end in “ier” are oublier, copier, associer, certifier and étudier
Here is an example:
oublier - to begin
manger in nous form in present tense → oublions
Imparfait stem → oubli
| | |
| :----------------------: | :----------------------: |
| Je | oubliais |
| Tu | oubliais |
| Il / Elle / On | oubliait |
| Nous | oubliions |
| Vous | oubliiez |
| Ils / Elles | oubliaient |
The Only Exception: ÊTRE
The imparfait stem for être is "Ét"
| Je | Étais |
| Tu | Étais |
| Il / Elle / On | Était |
| Nous | Étions |
| Vous | -Étaiez |
| Ils / Elles | Étaient |