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All About French Past Tense: The Guide to Forming and Using It

Let’s embrace the past and travel back in time!

The French past tense passé composé is used to talk about things that have already happened.

But there are actually four main French past tenses, each used for different time frames in the past.

In this article, I’ll explain everything you need to know to form and use the French past tense.

What Is the French Past Participle?

How to form le passé composé, using avoir: conjugation refresher, using être: vandertramp verbs, adding the past participle, examples of the passé composé, what are the french past compound tenses, passé composé (compound past), plus-que-parfait (pluperfect), passé antérieur (anterior past), other uses for the french past participle, forming the french passive voice, forming adjectives in french, how to use reflexive verbs in the past tense, how to practice the french past tense, online exercises, practice books.

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The past participle is a verb form that appears in both English and French. In English, the past participle typically ends in “-ed,” as in “walked”   or “opened .”  In French, the typical past participle endings are -é, -i  and  -u .

In English and French alike, the past participle can denote a past or completed action (e.g., “Jean opened the door”), but that’s not all. It can also be used to form compound tenses (“Jean had opened the door”) in the passive voice (“The door was opened by Jean”) and sometimes as an adjective (“The opened  door allows cold air to enter the room”).

As we get deeper into the fine details of the French past tense, it would be helpful to see it in use. The FluentU program can help you here, through hundreds of authentic French-language videos like movie clips and music videos.

FluentU uses interactive bilingual subtitles, so you can see how the past participles interact with other parts of the sentence and how they manifest in different contexts. And because these videos are authentic French content, you get to learn about grammar and other language concepts the way they’re actually used in real life.

Le passé composé  is a compound verb tense and it’s made of two parts.

The first is called the  auxiliary verb, or helping verb, and it’s the conjugated form of either avoir  or  être .

The second is called the past participle, which is created by replacing the last two letters of the verb’s infinitive.

You’ll need to conjugate your helping verb to match whoever is being spoken about. Here are the conjugations for avoir in case you need a refresher:

J ‘ai   (I have) Tu as   (You have) Il a  (He/she has) Nous avons   (We have) Vous avez   (You have) Ils ont  (They have)

Most verbs conjugate with  avoir , but all reflexive verbs—ie. se laver (to wash oneself),  se figurer (to imagine)—conjugate with être . There are also a number of verbs called  dr. mrs. Vandertramp verbs that conjugate with  être.

Here’s a list of the most common  être  verbs, their past participles and their definitions. Just remember the fun little mnemonic:  DR.  &  MRS. VANDERTRAMP. 

D evenir (to become) –  devenu * R evenir (to return) –  revenu *

M onter (to go up, ascend) – monté R ester (to stay) –  resté S ortir (to come out) –  sorti

V enir (to come) –   venu * A ller (to go) – allé N aître (to be born) – né * D escendre (to go down, descend) – descendu E ntrer (to enter) – entré R entrer (to return) – rentré T omber (to fall) – tombé R etourner  (to go back) – retourné A rriver (to arrive) – arrivé M ourir  (to die) – mort * P artir (to leave) – parti *

You may have noticed that with the exception of  naître  and  mourir,  all of these verbs are movement verbs: going, coming, arriving, leaving, etc. Keep this in mind when you’re rattling your brain to remember which helping verb you need.

Rejoice, because with a few exceptions, these  être  verbs are regular. Those with asterisks are the irregular ones you’ll need to remember.

Verbs that take être  involve one more step. After conjugating with your helping verb, you add your past participle in the mix, just like before, but this time, you agree the past participle with your subject:

• Elle est allé e (She went)
• Nous sommes venu s (We came)
• Elles sont resté es (They stayed)

Luckily, the endings are pretty straight forward:

• – e   at the end of the past past participle for feminine singular
• no ending for masculine singular
• – s   at the end of masculine plural
• – es   at the end of feminine plural

Add the past participle. To figure out what the past participle is, follow these (regular) rules. (We’ll get to irregular verbs later.)

• For -er verbs like  nager  (to swim), manger (to eat), jouer  (to play), etc. drop the -er and replace with -é to make the past participle: nagé , mangé , joué .
• For -ir verbs like  finir  (to finish), réfléchir  (to think), choisir (to choose), etc .   drop the -ir and replace with – i to make the past participle: fini , réfléchi , choisi .
• For – re verbs  like  perdre  (to lose), attendre  (to wait), répondre  (to respond), etc. drop the – re and replace with -u to make the past participle:  perdu , attendu , répondu .

So our perfect tense equation is:

Part A (helping verb) + Part B (past participle) = C (the perfect tense)

If you do your math right, it should look like this:

• J’ai mangé.   (I ate.)
• Tu as nagé.  (You swam.)
• Elle a réfléchi.  (She thought.)
• Nous avons perdu.  (We lost.)
• Vous avez attendu.  (You waited.)
• Ils ont répondu.  (They responded.)
• Elles ont joué.  (They played.)
• Je me suis lavé. / lavée (I washed myself.)
• Nous avons parlé. (We spoke.)
• Ils/Elles ont vendu. (They sold.)

In French, tenses and moods are either simple or compound.

Simple tenses are comprised of only one conjugated verb, whereas a compound tense is comprised of an auxiliary of either être (to be) or avoir (to have) along with the past participle.

In French, the compound past is used to refer to completed actions in the past. It’s often used in conjunction with the imparfait (imperfect), which describes actions in the past that are either incomplete or ongoing.

In the compound past, the auxiliary verb is conjugated in the present tense:

• J’ai mangé un biscuit.   (I ate a cookie.)
• Je suis allée au cinéma.  (I went to the movie theater.)

You’re already familiar with this one thanks to the detailed description above!

The pluperfect is used to refer to an action in the past that took place before another  action in the past. The latter occurring action can either be implied or explicitly stated.

In the pluperfect, the auxiliary verb is conjugated in the imperfect.

• J’avais mangé un biscuit avant de faire à manger .  (I had eaten a cookie [before making something to eat].)
• J’étais allé au cinéma avant de manger . (I had gone to the movie theater [before eating].)

The anterior past is a literary version of the pluperfect. It’s used when an action in the past is finished before another action (also in the past) took place.

In the anterior past, the auxiliary verb is conjugated in the  passé simple (simple past).

• Quand j’eus fini de ranger la maison, je sortis prendre l’air.  (When I had finished tidying up the house, I went outside to get some fresh air.)
• Elle eut mangé tout le gâteau avant que je n’arrive à la fête.  (She had eaten all the cake before I arrived at the party.)

Voice refers to the relationship between the subjects and verbs in a sentence. In French and English alike, there are two voices: active and passive.

In the active voice, the subject performs the action expressed by the verb, while in the passive voice, the action being referred to by the verb is done to the subject by an agent.

The passive voice is formed with the appropriately conjugated être (to be) + the past participle of the verb. The past participle must agree in gender and number with the noun to which it refers.

• Le travail est fait par Marie.   (The work is done by Marie.)
• Les lettres sont écrit es par Thomas.  (The letters were written by Thomas.)

The past participle can also be used to form adjectives. The adjective can either be formed by the past participle alone or with the verb être (to be).

The past participle must agree in gender and number with the noun to which it refers.

• Michel est un acteur connu de tout le monde.   (Michel is an actor known by everyone.)
• Déçue, Charlotte pleure.  (Disappointed, Charlotte cries.)

Reflexive verbs always take être , and they agree with their subject, just like the DR. & MRS. VANDERTRAMP verbs. Let’s take a gander at some examples:

• Tu t’es amusé. / amusée   (You had fun.)
• Il s’est habillé.  (He got dressed.)
• Elle s’est levée.  (She woke up.)
• Nous nous sommes fâchés.  (We got angry.)
• Vous vous êtes rasés.  (You have shaved.)
• Ils se sont soûlés.  (They got drunk.)
• Elles se sont maquillées.  (They put makeup on.)

Essentially, it’s just like the DR. & MRS. VANDERTRAMP verbs, but with your little reflexive pronoun tagging along before the helping verb. (Remember that the reflexive pronoun always matches the subject.)

But there’s a catch: If the reflexive verb is followed by a body part, the past participle does not agree.  For example:

• Je me suis lavé les bras.  (I washed my arms)
• Elle s’est cassé les jambes. (She broke her legs)

You can find many places to practice the French past tense online. Here are some of our favorites:

• Conjuguemos has fun exercises for different French past tenses. You can set how long you want to practice, then compelte conjugations of the verbs you’re presented on. The different categories makes it easy to focus your practice on specific areas of concern.
• Colleges like the University of Texas at Austin and Columbia University offer free online quizzes where you can practice verb conjugations.
• ToLearnFrench has very simple and easy-to-follow descriptions of the different past tenses, followed by straightforward fill-in-the-blank exerises for each.
• Lingolia has free exercises that mix multiple-choice and fill-in-the-blank questions for a wider ranger of practice.

Reading is the best way to see past tenses in action. Doing so helps to identify what past tenses look like, when and why they’re used and what their differences are.

Also, there are a good number of books that focus only on conjugating french verbs. Check these out for some guided practice:

• “501 French Verbs” tackle all of the most common irregular verbs to help you with those tricky exceptions to the rules. 
• “ Dummies Guide to French Verbs “ breaks down the complex world of French past tenses in a straightforward way.
• This book from the “Practice Makes Perfect” series focuses specifically on the French past tense. It explains the different past tenses and offers many examples and opportunities to practice the topic.

The perfect tense can often be a struggle, but it’s an important one to master. Once you have it down, you can breeze through the other compound tenses.

But hey, don’t stop here. There are other ways to speak in the past tense in French, and don’t forget the future . You’ll need them to become a mad time traveling scientist.

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Forming And Using The 5 Past Tenses In French: Full Guide

• Read time 16 mins

The past tense forms in French can be confusing for new learners.

It’s important to learn the rules of each form, and the appropriate contexts to use them in.

This guide will cover the past tense forms in detail, so you can start using them in your spoken and written French.

What are the five past tenses in French?

First of all, let’s actually identify what the five past tenses are in French. They include:

• The imperfect past tense
• The compound past tense
• The past simple
• The pluperfect past tense
• The anterior past tense

Each of these past tenses are used for different reasons.

Yes, they’re all past tenses, but there are certain rules that you’ll need to be aware of when forming and using them. Sit tight to find out how.

When is the imperfect past tense used in French?

We use the imperfect past tense to describe an action that occurred repeatedly, frequently or on an ongoing basis in the past.

To understand it as an English speaker, it helps to compare the imperfect past tense to phrases that contain the words “used to” or “would always”.

French writers use the imperfect past tense when they’re narrating a story or describing events that have happened in the past as a sort of commentary.

Examples of when to use the imperfect past tense in French

To clarify and explain which situations the imperfect past tense is used in French, here are three examples.

1. Use the imperfect past tense to describe something habitual that happened in the past

When describing habitual actions in the past, such as hobbies, we use the imperfect past tense in French.

Here’s an example:

Quand elle était enfant, Joséphine dessinait.

2. Use the imperfect past tense to describe actions that happened at the same time in the past

When describing actions that occurred simultaneously in the past, we use the imperfect past tense in French.

This is sometimes indicated by the preposition pendant , which means “during”, or “while”.

Pendant qu’elle dessinait, Joséphine regardait le paysage.

3. Use the imperfect past tense to describe how a person used to be in the past

When describing someone’s characteristics that they had as a child or an action that they did frequently, we use the imperfect past tense to describe them.

This is often accompanied with the word “used to”.

Here are two examples:

Elle parlait beaucoup quand elle était jeune.

Elle avait les cheveux longs, maintenant elle a les cheveux courts.

Which verb endings are used to conjugate the imperfect past tense in French?

The verbs we choose when writing or speaking in the imperfect past tense must be conjugated using particular verb endings that correspond to the subject of the sentence indicated by the personal pronouns , including the ones listed below:

For infinitive verbs ending in -er , choose from these endings:

• -_ais _(for the pronoun je)
• _-ais _(for the pronoun tu)
• -ait (for the pronouns il, elle, on)
• _-ions _(for the pronoun nous)
• _-iez _(for the pronoun vous)
• -aient (for the pronouns ils, elles)

For infinitive verbs ending in -ir , choose from these endings:

• _-issais _(for the pronoun je)
• _-issais _(for the pronoun tu)
• _-issait _(for the pronoun il, elle, on)
• _-issions _(for the pronoun nous)
• _-issiez _(for the pronoun vous)
• _-issaient _(for the pronouns ils, elles)

For infinitive verbs ending in -re , choose from these endings:

• _-ais _(for the pronoun je)
• _-ait _(for the pronoun il, elle, on)
• _-aint _(for the pronouns ils, elles)

Use these verb endings to make different people the subject of the sentence.

For instance, in our example above, Josephine is the subject of the sentence, so we conjugate the verb dessinait using the third person, imperfect past tense, elle , (which has the ending -ait ).

When is the compound past tense used in French?

The compound past tense is used frequently in French to describe an action that happened once in the past and has now been completed.

It is different from the imperfect since it describes actions that are not frequent or habitual. It helps to compare the compound past tense to the English past simple to understand it a little better.

In English, some examples of the past simple tense include “I ate”, “I drank”, “I slept”, and “I wrote”.

All of these actions have finished and belong to the past, and the equivalent past tense in French is the compound past tense, giving us j’ai mange, j’ai bu, j’ai dormi, j’ai écrit .

Here are some examples of the compound past tense in French in action.

1. Describing an action that happened once in the past

If an action only happens once in the past, such as being born, use the compound past tense.

Je suis né à l’été 1991.

2. Describing an action that happened once in the past but is linked to the present

This can be likened to the Spanish preterito perfecto , where you describe a past event that occurs once, but it has consequences in the present or affects the present.

Nous avons tellement mangé que nous ne pouvons pas manger de dessert.

How is the compound past tense formed in French?

We can use a formula to conjugate the compound past tense in French.

It comprises the verbs avoir or étre and the past participle of the main verb. The formula is:

Avoir or être in the present tense or an auxiliary verb + the main verb in the past participle

How to conjugate avoir and être in the present tense

To simplify the process of forming sentences in the compound past tense in French, check the table below to find out how to conjugate avoir and être in the present tense:

Forming the past participle for the compound past tense

Part of forming the compound past tense includes using the past participle, which can be done in different ways depending on the infinitive verb you want to modify.

It can be difficult to remember the rules, but it comes in handy for forming many of the past tenses in French, including the compound past tense, the pluperfect past tense, and the anterior past tense, so refer back to this section to help you.

In French, there are regular verbs and irregular verbs that you can modify to form the past participle.

Let’s first think about how to achieve this with regular verbs.

Forming the past participle with regular -er, -ir and -re verbs

We have divided this part into three sections, regular -er verbs, regular -ir verbs and regular -re verbs.

1. Past participles for -er verbs

For French verbs that end in _-er _in their infinitive form, we form the past participle simply by removing the _-er* and replacing it with *-é_.

For instance, if we’ve got the verb aimer , which ends in an -er in the infinitive form, we would remove the -er and replace it with é, giving us aimé.

2. Past participles for -ir verbs

If we have a French verb that ends in -ir in its infinitive form, we form the past participle by simply removing the -ir and replacing it with an -i .

For example, the verb choisir in its infinitive form ends in an -ir . We remove the -ir and replace it with -i , giving us choisi .

3. Past participles for -re verbs

If we have a French verb that ends in -re in its infinitive form, we form the past participle by removing the -re , and replacing it with a -u .

For instance, the verb vendre in its infinitive form ends in an -re . We remove the -re and replace it with -u , giving us vendu .

Now, this is only for regular verbs. There are different rules for irregular verbs. Let’s have a look at them.

Forming the past participle with irregular French verbs

Since it can be very difficult to remember the rules, you can use verb conjugation tools to help you remember the past participle of irregular French verbs, but we have put together a list of rules to help you remember the past participle forms for many of them.

With some irregular verbs, you can replace their endings with a -u to form the past participle, some of which are:

With other irregular verbs, you can replace their endings with a -t , which will give you the past participle.

Some examples of verbs like these include:

Other irregular verbs require you to replace their endings with an -is to form the past participle.

Take a look at the table below for some examples of these verbs:

There are irregular verbs that require you to replace their endings with an -ert , which will give you the past participle, such as the ones below:

Some other irregular verbs don’t follow precise patterns, so you will need to remember them on your own, or use a conjugator tool to keep it fresh in your memory.

These include:

When is the past simple used in French?

The past simple is used in French to refer to an action that takes place once in the past.

The action that the past simple describes is always complete or has finished.

Using the past simple tense in French: examples

Let’s take a look at the main scenarios in which you would use the past simple in French.

1. Use the past simple to describe an action that occurs once and has been completed

If the action is not repeated in the past and has finished now, use the past simple in French.

The past simple is often accompanied with words that mark the time of the action, such as hier or l’année dernière .

Hier, mangeai une pomme.

2. Use the past simple to talk about several actions that have interrupted a previous action

If there are several actions that have occurred and they interrupt an action, or caused it to stop happening in the past, use the simple past tense. It helps to think about this past tense as if you’re telling a story as an author would, and something happens suddenly, interrupting another past action.

Je nettoyais ma chambre quand le téléphone a sonna.

How are the past simple in French and the compound past tense different?

The main difference between the simple and compound past tenses in French is that the simple past tense is used in written French, whereas the compound past tense is used in spoken French.

To put it another way, it is best to use the compound past tense when speaking, and the simple past when writing.

How is the past simple formed in French?

When using the past simple in French, the verb you use must be selected from the past simple conjugations and the right ending must be added to the infinitive verb.

If you are conjugating an infinitive verb in the past simple that ends in er, choose from the following endings:

• -ai (for the pronoun je )
• - as (for the pronoun tu )
• - a (for the pronoun il, elle, on )
• - âmes (for the pronoun nous )
• - âtes (for the pronoun vous )
• - érent (for the pronouns ils, elles )

If you are conjugating an infinitive verb in the past simple that ends in ir , choose from the following endings:

• - is (for the pronoun je )
• - is (for the pronoun tu )
• - it (for the pronoun il, elle, on )
• - îmes (for the pronoun nous )
• - îtes (for the pronoun vous )
• - irent (for the pronounss ils, elles )

If you are conjugating an infinitive verb in the past simple that ends in re , choose from the following endings:

• - irent (for the pronoun ils, elles )

When is the pluperfect past tense used in French?

In French, we use the pluperfect when an event happened before another action in the past.

For this reason, we use the pluperfect tense with other past tenses in French, including the past simple or the compound past tense. We normally use it to describe a story or tell an anecdote.

How to use the pluperfect past tense in French: an example

For example, if you know an author who is writing a novel, someone might explain that it took a lot of practice for them to perfect the writing process.

To say this, they could use the pluperfect past tense:

Il avait beaucoup écrit avant de pouvoir écrire le livre.

How is the pluperfect past tense formed in French?

We form the pluperfect past tense in French by combining avoir and être in the imperfect tense with a main verb in its past participle form.

You can use the following formula to help you remember the pluperfect past tense in French:

Avoir or être in the imperfect tense + the main verb in the past participle

So, here’s how to form the verbs avoir and être in the imperfect tense to help you form the pluperfect:

How is the pluperfect past tense formed with negative sentences?

If you’re writing a negative sentence in the pluperfect past tense, always remember that the main verb in the past participle form should follow the negation and come after the word pas .

How is the pluperfect past tense formed for negative sentences that contain reflexive verbs?

If you’re writing a negative sentence in the pluperfect past tense that contains a reflexive verb, keep in mind that you must place the reflexive pronoun in between the first part of the negation – after the word ne – and before the main verb in its auxiliary form.

When is the anterior past tense used in French?

Although the anterior past tense is not used frequently in French, and you’ll only really notice it being used in literary books or in literature, it is used in the same situations as the pluperfect.

It describes an event that takes place before another event in the past.

Sentences that use this past tense will always contain two actions.

You will notice that the anterior past tense in French is indicated where one of the conjunctions appear in the dependent clause of a sentence:

• Aussitôt que

How to use the anterior past tense: an example

Here is an example of how the anterior past tense is used in French:

Lorsqu’il eut reçu la bonne nouvelle, il a décidé de dire aux voisins.

Notice that there are two events in this example – receiving good news and telling the neighbours.

There’s also the conjunction lorsque , which signals that the anterior past tense will be used in the sentence.

How is the pluperfect past tense different from the anterior past tense in French?

Although they use similar constructs, the anterior past tense is used in formal writing or in texts that are formal, whereas the pluperfect is used in speech.

How is the anterior past tense formed in French?

We form the anterior past tense in French by using the past simple of the verb avoir or être , combined with the past participle of a main verb.

The formula for this is:

Avoir / être in past simple + the main verb in past participle

So, as you can see, forming sentences in the anterior past tense in French requires knowledge of how to conjugate avoir and être in the past simple tense.

Here’s how to do it:

Confidently describe events in the past in French by forming the French past tenses

As you can see, there’s a lot to cover when learning past tenses in French.

Practising a little bit every day will give you the confidence you need to accurately describe events in the past in French.

Did I miss anything?

Comment below.

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French Tenses Made Simple

Do you get tense when looking at French conjugation tables? Handling verbs in French can seem quite overwhelming at first: There are distinct endings for each pronoun, six different moods, and soooo many tenses!

But of course, there’s a trick. Once you take a closer look, it’s not nearly as complicated as you might think. These verb endings follow rules, only a fraction of French tenses are used in real life, and even fewer are useful in spoken French.

In this article, you’ll find a quick overview of the general rules concerning French verb conjugation. Then, we’ll dive right into the list of French tenses: present, past, and future. Oh, and there will be lots of cats involved because they generally make grammar more interesting.

Elle embrasse un chaton. (“She’s kissing a kitten.”)

• French Conjugation in a Nutshell
• Present Tenses
• Future Tenses
• Common Past Tenses
• Literary Past Tenses

Le mot de la fin

1. french conjugation in a nutshell.

Before we get too far into the details, here’s some basic information about French tenses and conjugations you should know.

How Many Tenses Do You Really Need to Speak French?

Did you know that French has 17 tenses , 6 moods, and 2 voices? Wait, don’t run away!

You only need a fraction of that list to get by on a daily basis, and you’d be surprised how far you can get with only two tenses:

• Présent (Present)
• Passé composé (Compound past)

With the présent , you can describe anything happening right now as well as things that happen regularly—you can even use it to describe future events!

And with the passé composé , you can refer to any past event, unless you have a really complex chain of events to describe.

As you get more comfortable with the language, you’ll slowly add more tenses to the mix. However, for daily conversations, we rarely use more than five or six tenses. Many of the others are not used anymore, not even in literature. So, you can relax!

How to Set the Mood

When we talk about le mode ( the mood ) in French conjugation, it refers to the attitude of the speaker toward the action of the verb. Are they stating a fact? Is it hypothetical? Are they giving orders?

• L’indicatif (Indicative) is used to express facts and truth. This is the most common mood.
• Le subjonctif (Subjunctive) describes something possible or uncertain.
• Le conditionnel (Conditional) is used for conditions or possibilities.
• L’impératif (Imperative) is the tense we use for giving orders or instructions.

Simple Tenses vs. Compound Tenses

Most French tenses are “simple tenses.” This means the verb is conjugated according to the person, mood, and tense and its ending changes accordingly.

For example, the verb parler (to speak; to talk) could be conjugated as follows:

• Nous parlons (We speak)
• Je parlerai (I will talk)
• Ils parlaient (They were speaking)

Compound tenses , on the other hand, are formed using an auxiliary verb . It can be either être (to be) or avoir (to have). In the case of a compound tense, you need to conjugate the auxiliary:

• Nous avons parlé (“We have talked”)
• Je suis tombé / tombée (“I have fallen”) [Masculine / Feminine]

Relax, you don’t need more than two tenses to get started!

2. Present Tenses

The most important French tenses for beginners to learn are those that deal with the present. Here are the four present tenses you need to know:

[Indicatif] Présent (Present)

Le présent is the equivalent of the English present tense. In French, it can be used to talk about recurring actions, events in progress, and even the future in some cases. 

Here are a few examples of its various forms:

[Subjonctif] Présent (Present Subjunctive)

Le subjonctif présent is used to express something that’s possible or uncertain in the present.

[Impératif] Présent (Present Imperative)

L’impératif présent is used to give orders, advice, or instructions that are effective immediately.

This is by far the most common tense for the imperative mood.

[Conditionnel] Présent (Present Conditional)

Le conditionnel présent refers to a condition or a possibility set in the present.

Elle caresse son chien. (“She’s petting her dog.”)

3. Future Tenses

Need to talk about your future plans or coordinate a schedule with a native French speaker? No worries! Next on our French tenses list is the future tense and its different moods. 

[Indicatif] Futur Simple (Future)

Le futur simple is the French equivalent of the classic “will”-based future in English. We use it to make predictions and talk about what will happen later.

[Indicatif] Futur Proche (Near Future)

Le futur proche is used for something set in the near future. We’re about to do it, it’s coming soon. It’s very close to the English [“going to” + verb] and even has a similar structure.

Just like in English, we use the conjugated verb aller (to go) + infinitive.

[Indicatif] Futur Antérieur (Anterior Future)

Le futur antérieur is used to talk about two different moments in the past, one after the other. The first one , chronologically, will be in the futur antérieur .

It’s built around the auxiliary être or avoir , followed by the past participle of the verb. The participle agrees in gender and number, as you’ll see in these examples:

You should keep in mind that what matters is not the order of the events in the sentence, but their order in time.

• What happens first? My departure.
• What happens next? The end of the week.

If there is another verb describing the second event , it will be in futur simple .

Je vais finir mon verre. (“I will finish my drink.”)

4. Common Past Tenses

There are numerous past tenses in French, but luckily, very few of them are actually useful on a daily basis. In fact, many of them are either for literature or are downright outdated.

Let’s start with the most useful French past tenses :

[Indicatif] Passé Composé (Compound Past)

Le passé composé is the most common past tense in French. It’s the equivalent of the English simple past and it’s used to talk about a past event with a limited duration, that is now over.

[Indicatif] Imparfait (Imperfect)

L’imparfait is similar to the English past progressive. We use it to describe facts and actions from the past while focusing on their duration or repetition. 

This is what you’d use to talk about an action that was taking place (for a certain duration, or regularly) at some point in the past.

You can combine this tense with le passé composé when describing an action that was taking place in the past until another brief action happened (also in the past).

[Indicatif] Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect)

This equivalent of the English past perfect is used to describe actions that were taking place before a certain moment in the past.

[Subjonctif] Passé (Past Subjunctive)

Le subjonctif passé is used to express something possible or uncertain in the past.

It sounds pretty awkward once translated, because, in English, we would normally use the present in cases like that:

• “It’s important that I pet a cat before tomorrow.”

And the same goes for French. In most cases, and in any conversation, you would say: 

• Il est important que je caresse un chat avant demain. (Present subjunctive)

[Conditionnel] Passé (Past Conditional)

Le conditionnel passé refers to a condition or a possibility set in the past.

Je caressais un chaton. (“I was petting a kitten.”)

5. Literary Past Tenses

Now, let’s have a look at these marginal or literary tenses. You’re not likely to hear them in many conversations, but if you’re at an advanced level of French, it might be a good time to learn about them.

Otherwise, feel free to skip this section. You can always revisit it later at your leisure.

[Indicatif] Passé Simple (Past Simple)

Le passé simple describes actions set in the past, but unlike l’imparfait , these are one-time, completed, unrepeated actions. 

While the passé composé is mostly a spoken tense, the passé simple is its literary equivalent and is almost never used orally.

[Indicatif] Passé Antérieur (Anterior Past)

This is a purely written tense that is used to express what happened right before another event in the past.

[Subjonctif] Imparfait (Imperfect Subjunctive)

This tense started disappearing in the middle of the nineteenth century and is almost completely gone from today’s French. You can still find it in classic literature if you dig deep enough.

It’s used pretty much like the present subjunctive, but follows some of the most complicated past tenses. It expresses something possible or uncertain. Nowadays, we could simply replace it with subjonctif présent .

[Subjonctif] Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect Subjunctive)

A couple of centuries ago, the subjonctif plus-que-parfait would replace the subjonctif passé in a subordinate clause, when the main clause was conjugated in the past and the action of the subordinate clause was set before the action of the main clause.

Nowadays, nobody’s using it, even in writing.

[Impératif] Passé (Past Imperative)

This is a weird tense that has almost disappeared. Take the imperative (Pet this cat. / Finish your drink.) and put it in the past. 

You’re instructed to have done something in the past, which is a bit difficult to translate. It would be the equivalent of: “Make sure you have done that at this point in the future.”

Elle finit son verre. (“She’s finishing her drink.”)

In this guide, you’ve learned everything about French verb tenses: past, present, and future…simple vs. conditional…even the six different moods! Do you feel ready to impress your friends with your flawless pluperfect conditional?

If you’re a beginner, I really suggest that you first focus on the présent and passé composé . You’ll be amazed by how far they can take you! And if you have more good tricks to quickly learn tenses, make sure to share them in the comments below.

FrenchPod101 also has tons of vocabulary lists with audio recordings as well as free resources to boost your studies and keep your French learning fresh and entertaining!

Remember that you can also use our Premium PLUS service, MyTeacher , to get personal 1-on-1 coaching. Your private teacher can help you with tenses, conjugation, and more. In addition to giving you assignments, providing you with personalized exercises, and recording audio samples just for you, your teacher will review your work and help improve your pronunciation. 

Happy learning on FrenchPod101 !

About the Author: Born and bred in the rainy north of France, Cyril Danon has been bouncing off various jobs before he left everything behind to wander around the wonders of the World. Now, after quenching his wanderlust for the last few years, he’s eager to share his passion for languages.

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Le passé composé: the past tense in French

When to use the passé composé in french, how to conjugate the passé composé in french.

• Participe passé: the French past participle

Avoir or être?

Agreement of the participe passé.

• Lingolia Plus French

What is the passé composé ?

The passé composé is the most important past tense in French. It corresponds to the English simple past (I did, I saw …) or sometimes the present perfect (I have done, I have seen …) .

The passé composé talks about actions that were completed in the past and emphasises their results or consequences in the present.

In spoken language, the passé composé is always used instead of the passé simple . We form the passé composé using the auxiliary verbs avoir or être followed by the past participle (le participe passé ) of the verb.

Learn everything you need to know about the French passé composé with Lingolia’s quick and easy examples, then put your knowledge to the test in the free exercises.

Hier, Michel a rangé son bureau.

Il a décidé de ranger son bureau chaque semaine.

We use the passé composé to talk about one-time, completed actions that took place in the past. This tense places the emphasis on the result or consequences of the action.

Learners of French often find it difficult to know when to use the passé composé and when to use the imperfect tense . Go to our page dedicated to the difference between the imparfait and passé composé to learn when to use which tense, then test yourself in the free exercises.

To conjugate the passé composé we use the present tense of avoir or être as an auxiliary verb, followed by the past participle (participe passé) of the main verb.

In negative sentences , the past participle comes after the second part of the negation (pas) .

For reflexive verbs , the reflexive pronoun comes after the first part of the negation (ne) and before the auxiliary verb (avoir/être) .

To see the conjugation of any French verb in the passé composé go to our verb conjugator .

Participe passé : the French past participle

For regular er/ ir/re -verbs, the past participle is formed as follows:

• If the infinitive ends in -er , the participle ends in é Example: aim er – aim é
• If the infinitive ends in -ir , the participle ends in i Example: fin ir – fin i
• If the infinitive ends in -re , the participle ends in u Example: vend re - vend u

For the irregular verbs, however, we have to look up the past participle form in the list of irregular verbs or check the verb conjugator — or simply learn the forms by heart.

Most verbs construct the passé composé with avoir, however être is used as the auxiliary verb in the following cases:

• with reflexive verbs
• with the following verbs of movement: naître/mourir be born/die , aller/venir go/come , monter/descendre go up/go down , arriver/partir arrive/leave , entrer/sortir enter/go out , apparaître appear , rester stay , retourner return , tomber fall and their related forms such as: revenir come back , rentrer go back in , remonter go back up , redescendre go back down , repartir leave again .

Note: we use avoir when descendre, ( r)entrer, (re)monter, retourner and sortir are followed by a direct object. In this case, the meaning of the verb often changes.

Need a handy trick to remember which verbs take être as their auxiliary in the passé composé ? Check out our page on the difference between avoir and être.

For some verbs, the participe passé has to agree in gender and number with either the subject or the object of the sentence. This agreement is necessary in the following situations:

• When a verb takes être as an auxiliary, the participle agrees in gender and number with the subject. Example: Il est all é dans son bureau. He went to his office. Elle est all ée dans son bureau. She went to her office. Ils sont all és dans leurs bureaux. They went to their offices. Elles sont all ées dans leurs bureaux. They (only women) went to their offices.
• For verbs that take avoir in the passé composé , the participle only agrees in gender and number with a direct object that comes before the verb. This direct object can take three possible forms: a personal pronoun (me, te, le, la, nous, vous, les) , the relative pronoun que , or a noun placed before the verb (usually in questions and exclamations). Example: Il a rangé son bureau . → Il l' a rang é . He cleaned up his office. → He cleaned it (Fr. masc. sing.) up. Il a rangé sa chambre . → Il l' a rang ée . He cleaned up his room.→ He cleaned it (Fr. fem. sing. ) up. Il a rangé ses dossiers . → Il les a rang és . He sorted his files. → He sorted them (Fr. masc. p lural) . Il a rangé ses cartes de visite . → Il les a rang ées . He sorted his business cards.→ He sorted them (Fr. fem. p lural) .

The participe passé does not agree with the subject of the following verbs: se téléphoner to call each other , se parler to talk to each other , se mentir to lie to each other , se plaire (complaire/déplaire) to like each other , se sourire to smile at each other , se rire to laugh at each other , se nuire to hurt each other , se succéder to succeed each other , se suffire to be enough , se ressembler to look like each other , s’en vouloir to be annoyed with each other . This is because the reflexive pronoun is an indirect object. It is used in the sense of “each other” for these verbs.

se rendre compte

Although it is reflexive, the past participle of the verb se rendre compte (to realise) does not agree with the subject of the sentence. This is because the word compte acts as a direct object (se rendre quoi ? → compte).

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Voyager (to travel) conjugation

Conjugation of voyager, examples of voyager, more french verbs, similar but longer, other french verbs with the meaning similar to 'travel':, 'travel' in different languages.

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Master The Past Tenses In French: The Imperfect Tense Vs The Perfect Tense

When you start learning French , you can expect to encounter grammar points that leave you feeling confused, like the past tenses in French.

One particular grammatical nettle you have to grasp fairly early on is the difference between the imperfect tense ( imparfait in French) and the French perfect tense. And, truth be told, it can be a bit awkward at first.

The main reason for this is that it's tricky to know which one of these French past tenses to use in different situations.

But it’s not so difficult if you understand the basics clearly.

In this article, I'll compare the two French past tenses so that by the end of the post, you'll:

• Know when to use (and not use) the French imperfect and perfect tenses
• See why it’s not as hard as it might first seem.

So let's dive in and say au revoir to any confusion about the French past tenses.

Note:   Since you can find the conjugations for these tenses in any decent grammar book or online, this will article will focus on something much more subtle and difficult – how to use the French past tenses correctly. 

By the way, if you want to learn French through stories, not rules, my top recommendation for language learners is my Uncovered courses, which teach you through StoryLearning®.  Click here  to find out more and try out the method for free.

What Is “Tense”, Anyway?

It’s best to start right at the beginning. So first, what is “tense”?

Tense is what certain languages, including English and French, use to talk about the past, present or future.

You know how we say “I drink” for the present but “I drank” for the past? That’s “tense”.

For example, in English it works as follows:

• “I drink” is the present tense
• “I drank” is the past simple tense (sometimes also “simple past” or “preterit”)
• “I’ve drunk” is the present perfect tense.

These names of the different tenses are not so important. But we’re going to be talking about them later so it’s worth mentioning them now so that you don't become overwhelmed!

So now you know what tense is let's start looking at the different forms of the French past tense.

The French Past Perfect Tense

Before we start talking about the imperfect tense French examples, first, let’s take a look at the French “perfect” tense.

The perfect tense is what’s known as a “compound tense”, meaning it is made up of an auxiliary verb plus the past participle of the main verb.

That may all sound a bit technical. But it’s quite easy since in English, we form the present perfect in much the same way.

• In English, we say “I have eaten”
• While in French, the equivalent expression is j’ai mangé .

In the English version, “have” is the auxiliary verb and “eaten” is the past participle of the verb “to eat”; in the French version, ai is the auxiliary verb ( ai is the first person singular of the verb avoir,  “to have”) and mangé is the French past participle of the verb manger , “to eat”.

• Pronoun +  Auxiliary Verb + Past Participle
• Je = pronoun
• ai (from  avoir) = auxiliary verb
• mangé (from the verb  manger ) = past participle

The only complication in French is that some verbs take the auxiliary verb être ( to be) instead of avoir .

You don't need to know the details here – for the moment, it's enough just to be aware that in French, there are two possible auxiliary verbs.

The Biggest Mistake Beginners Make With The French Perfect Tense

The biggest mistake many beginners make with the French past perfect tense ( parfait or passé composé in French) is to equate it with the present perfect in English.

This makes sense since we form these tenses in the same way – and often the best translation for an English present perfect is a French perfect – but French also uses its perfect tense when English would choose the past simple.

(Many French speakers often make the same mistake in the opposite direction, so when you hear this, now you'll know why!)

In English, if you say, “I have eaten a pizza”, that action has some connection to the present. Perhaps you're explaining why you are not hungry now. Or maybe you're giving an excuse for declining a dinner invitation.

In any case, to express this in French, you would use the perfect tense:

• J’ai mangé une pizza, je n’ai pas faim maintenant (I’ve eaten a pizza, I’m not hungry now).

However, in English, if you say, “I ate a pizza yesterday”, you use the past simple (“ate”) to express the idea that the action happened in the past, that it’s finished and has no connection to the present.

In French, you would express this as:

• Hier, j’ai mangé une pizza

As you can see, in French we use the same structure as in the previous example. The past tense in French does not distinguish between these two variations with different tenses like English does.

When Not To Use The French Perfect Tense

There are also times when English uses a present perfect tense where French requires a different tense altogether.

An important example is when talking about “how long”.

For example, the sentence “I’ve lived here for a year” expresses the idea that you have lived in a particular place for a year and that you still live there now .

• J’habite ici depuis un an

Here, you use the present tense. Literally, this translates as “I live here since one year”.

The French Perfect Tense – A Summary

In French, the perfect tense has two main uses:

• J’ai mangé une pizza hier  ( I ate a pizza yesterday)
• J’ai mangé une pizza, je n’ai pas faim maintenant  ( I have eaten a pizza, I’m not hungry now)

Remember, the perfect is not used to say how long you have done something: “I have lived here for one year” translates as  j’habite ici depuis un an , using the present tense in French.

The French Imperfect Tense

The imperfect tense in French is slightly more complicated in that it has no direct equivalent in English, either in form or in usage. However, like many aspects of language learning, it’s not difficult, it’s just different .

The French imperfect is known as the French past simple tense, meaning the form of the main verb changes and there's no auxiliary verb. For example:

• je regardais  (I watch)
• tu regardais  (you watch)
• il regardait  (he watches)

Perhaps the best way to understand the French past imperfect tense is to focus on the idea that it expresses an action that took place for a certain duration. But the time when the action started or ended is not important.

Of course, we can express the same idea in English, we just say it in a number of different ways.

Use #1: When Something That Was Happening Gets Interrupted

One common use of the imperfect in French is in a narrative where something's happening and then something else happens, often interrupting the first action. Let’s think of some examples:

• The boy was running when he fell over
• The driver was texting when he lost control of the vehicle
• The writer was typing when the computer crashed and he lost all his work

In all of these examples, something was happening when something else happened. For the first verb in the sentence, French uses the imperfect; for the second, it uses the perfect. 

• Le garçon courait quand il est tombé
• Le conducteur conduisait quand il a perdu le contrôle du véhicule
• L’écrivain tapait sur son ordinateur quand l’ordinateur s’est bloqué et il a perdu tout son travail

Sometimes, if you need to insist on the fact that the first action was being done at that moment, you can add the expression en train de  (for example:  le garçon était en train de courir quand il est tombé)  – but it isn’t necessary.

In this type of sentence, the idea of “was doing something” is already part of the imperfect verb.

Use #2: Describing Continuous Actions In The Past

Another similar use, and one that is fairly easy to understand, is simply to describe a continuous action in the past – this time without another action happening to interrupt it. For example:

• He was crying
• It was snowing
• They were singing

In French, you express these examples as:

• Il pleurait
• Il neigeait
• Ils chantaient

Use #3: Expressing The Concept Of “Used To Do Something”

A final common use is to express something that happened habitually for a period of time. Again, let’s look at an example:

• When I was young, I often played football

In this sentence, we can clearly see that we are talking about a period of time (“when I was young”). And that we are talking about something that happened habitually. The addition of the word “often” reinforces this idea.

In English, we could also express this as:

• When I was young, I often used to play football

In fact, both versions of this sentence contain the idea of “used to”, even though it is only the second version states it explicitly. 

In any case, when we wish to express the idea of “used to” in French, the idea that you did something habitually over a period of time, you use the imperfect tense:

• Quand j’étais jeune, je jouais souvent au foot

Past Tenses In French- How To Know Which One To Use

To finish up, let’s compare the perfect and imperfect tenses in French to highlight some further uses. And hopefully clear up any confusion that may remain.

A common misconception is to assume that for any instantaneous action, you should use the perfect, while for a longer action, you should choose the imperfect. However, the duration of the action is never the deciding factor in whether you use the perfect or imperfect in French.

Think about these three sentences:

• I slept all afternoon
• I’ve slept all afternoon
• I’ve been sleeping all afternoon.

Since “all afternoon” is a period of time, you might be tempted to use an imperfect tense in French. However, all of these sentences require the perfect:

• J’ai dormi tout l’après-midi

Choosing Between The French Past Tenses: Why It's All Perfectly Logical

Sometimes grammatical terms can be strange. But here, the words “perfect” and “imperfect” are actually quite logical if you understand what they mean.

The perfect describes a precisely defined (“perfectly” defined) period of time while the imperfect describes vaguely or imprecisely defined (“imperfectly” defined) periods of time.

Since “this afternoon” is a precise time period, all three sentences are expressed using the perfect tense.

Let’s take some other French past tense examples to make this even clearer:

• I watched TV for two hours/all afternoon
• J’ai regardé la télé pendant deux heures/tout l’après-midi

Since “two hours” and “all afternoon” are clearly defined, the verb should be perfect.

• I watched TV a lot when I was young
• Je regardais beaucoup la télé quand j’étais jeune

Since “when I was young” is imprecisely (“imperfectly”) defined.  Compare these sentences:

• I lived there when I was a child
• J’y habitais quand j’étais enfant

Because “when I was a child” is imprecisely defined, but:

• I lived there for a year when I was a child
• J’y ai habité pendant un an quand j’étais enfant

Because “a year” is precisely defined (and the sentence is focusing on “a year” rather than “when I was a child”), in the second example we choose the perfect tense.

Master The Most Subtle Example: When Both French Past Tenses Are Possible

To finish, we can look at a slightly different example to illustrate another point.

Sometimes, you can use either the perfect tense or the imperfect tense to translate an English sentence correctly. 

However, in these cases, the choice shows something about how the speaker views the situation or what they want to focus on. For example:

• Last year, I worked hard every day
• L’année dernière, je travaillais dur tous les jours
• L’année dernière, j’ai travaillé dur tous les jours

Both are correct, so what’s the difference?

In this case, the difference has nothing to do the period of time since, for both, we are talking about “last year”. Here we're dealing with something else, and the difference is quite subtle.

As we've seen, the imperfect expresses a habitual action. In contrast, here the perfect expresses a repeated action. 

Here, if the speaker chooses the first example, what they wish to express is the idea that last year, they worked hard all the time and that it was considered normal and habitual to work hard every day for the entirety of the year.

If the speaker chooses the second option using the perfect, the idea is that every day, they worked hard over and over again.

The distinction is slight . A native speaker would instinctively know which one to choose to express their meaning. But it’s fairly certain he or she would have a hard time explaining why if you pressed them to do so!

French Past Tenses: Don't Think Too Much – Just Practice

When learning French tenses, grammar rules like these are similar to stabilisers on a bike. They help you start speaking, and at the beginning, you may rely on them, but with practice, you'll forget about the rules as you start speaking more naturally .

Mastering the past tense in French requires familiarising yourself with the rules. But the real learning is done through spending lots of and lots of time with the language. This way, you see the French imperfect and perfect tenses over and over again in context.

The more you can do this, the faster you'll develop a “natural feel” for when to use the perfect and when to use the imperfect in French.

With regular French past tense practice, soon enough, you will instinctively choose the right tense without even realising it – just like a native speaker!

Master French Grammar The Natural Way

If mastering French grammar like the imperfect tense requires you to spend a lot of time with the language, the question is, which material should you use and how do you find it at the right level?

Well, I've made it simple for you in my French Grammar Hero programme. It's specially designed for low intermediate to intermediate learners of French and helps you master the core grammar of French naturally, through story.

Instead of memorising rules and pouring over verb tables, your main job is to read a story in French and enjoy it. The grammar then emerges out of the story, but it's not the main focus.

In this way, you pick up the grammar, learn the past tenses in French in a natural way, and use it when you speak in French to sound more accurate and confident.

Click here to find out more and become a French grammar hero!

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French grammar points – Those confusing past tenses in French

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The Passé composé versus the imparfait! When studying French, everyone needs to spend some time going over the tricky relationship between these two main past tenses. Instead of trying the figure out how they translate exactly into English grammar terminology (it doesn’t work in many cases), it is better to understand how and when they are used in French. First, we should understand the distinctions between the passé composé and the imparfait in order to be able to express past events accurately and with the correct tense. Study the following explanations, and then see how they are used in the 3 different real life situation scenarios!

Let’s start with understanding the use of the Passé Composé:

The ‘passé composé’ is used to express a punctual and completed action which has taken place in the past. For example, “We ate early this morning.” “The train arrived on time last night.”

Whereas in English this kind of past action is expressed with a simple conjugation, in French the passé composé, as it’s name implies, is a compound tense and has two elements to it: an auxiliary verb and the past participle of the verb you are conjugating. The auxiliary verb will always be either the verb avoir or the verb être, and the conjugation involves simply using the auxiliary verb in the present tense followed by the past participle of main verb.

Note: 80% of French verbs are conjugated with avoir. Many verbs of motion take être, such as aller (to go), partir (to leave), venir (to come), retourner (to go back), arriver (to arrive). And, all reflexive verbs are conjugated with the verb être. Common verbs such as se coucher (to go to bed), se réveiller (to wake up), se lever (to get up), s’habiller (to get dressed), s’ennuyer (to be bored), etc…

An example of a verb that is conjugated with the verb avoir:

J’ai regardé la télé = I watched some TV. Tu as regardé le nouveau film = You watched the new movie. Il/elle a regardé le DVD = He/she watched the DVD. Nous avons regardé le programme = We watched the programme. Vous avez regardé les informations = You watched the news. Ils ont regardé le spectacle = They watched the show.

An example of a verb that is conjugated with the verb être:

Je suis allé(e)(s) à l’école = I went to school. Tu es allé(e) au marché = You went to the market. Il est allé à l’hôpital = He went to the hospital. Elle est allée au magasin = She went to the shop. Nous sommes allés(es) au restaurant = We went to the restaurant. Vous êtes allé(e)(s) chez les voisins = You went to the neighbours. Ils/elles sont allé(e)(s) à Marseille = They went to Marseille.

Note: The past participle agrees, just like an adjective, with the feminine and plural subjects only with the verb être – not with avoir (unless you have a direct object before the verb, but more on that later.) Notice the four possibilities when the subject is Vous.

Examples: Hier, je suis allé(e) au magasin et j’ai acheté une nouvelle robe! =Yesterday I went to the store and I bought a new dress. La semaine dernière en classe de maths, je me suis ennuyé(e) (reflexive verb : s’ennuyer)=Last week in Math class, I got bored. Avant-hier, j’ai travaillé pour mon père = The day before yesterday, I worked for my father.

Notice the above examples express punctual and completely finished actions.

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The Imparfait — The other past tense is used for the following three situations:

1) To describe someone’s physical or emotional state, a mood, the weather or a general condition or situation … It is generally used to describe the more passive actions vs the active ones.

Example: Hier soir, ma mère était très belle, elle sentait bon et elle souriait sans cesse – elle était visiblement amoureuse = Last night, my mother was very beautiful, she smelled nice and she continuously smiled, she was obviously in love.

2) For an action or a habit that took place repeatedly in the past. The equivalent in English would be ‘I used to…’ or ‘would’. Note that we do not have a word in French to express ‘used to’ but the imperfect tense is used to communicate the equivalent.

Quand j’étais jeune, j’allais tous les dimanche voir ma grand-mère – When I was young, I used to go (I would go) every Sunday to see my grandmother.

3) A continuing action in the past that has not been completed yet. We don’t know when the action finished. In English, the equivalent is ‘was, were + verb ending in ing’ – ex: I was thinking, I was playing.

Hier soir je pensais à nos vacances pendant que je regardais une emission sur les voyages – Last night I was thinking about our vacation while I was watching a programme on travel.

The conjugation of verbs in the imparfait has a simple pattern, you just need to take the verb minus it’s infinitive endings and then add the following endings (let’s take ‘parler’ as an exemple): Je parlais Tu parlais Il/elle parlait Nous parlions Vous parliez Ils parlaient

For some irregular verbs, the form of the verb used in the imperfect, or the stem, is the same as the conjugation for nous in the present tense minus the ons ending.

Ex. choisir (to choose) Nous choisissons (the present tense), and the stem used for the imperfect will be choisiss (je choisissais, tu choisissais, etc.) faire (nous faisons), the stem is fais (je faisais, tu faisais, vous faisiez, etc.)

Note : you will hear the verb être and the verb vouloir most of the time in the imparfait. I would advise that you automatically conjugate theses two verbs in the imparfait and not in the passé composé each time you use these two verbs.

This is how they are conjugated:

J’étais à Paris = I was in Paris Tu étais chez moi = You were at my place. Il/elle était triste = He/she was sad. Vous étiez fatigués = You were tired. Nous étions heureux = We were happy. Vous étiez en France = you were in France.

Je voulais du chocolat = I wanted some chocolate. Tu voulais partir en Turquie = You wanted to leave for Turkey Il/elle voulait du thé = He/she wanted some tea. Nous voulions travailler en France = We wanted to work in France. Ils/elle voulaient de l’argent = They wanted money.

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Le Passé Composé: Everything you need about this French past tense

The Passé   composé is probably the most important French past tense. Its primary usage is to talk about actions completed in the past, which in English, would correspond to the simple past or present perfect.

The passé   composé is the French   past   tense  that is the closest in time to the present. It is constantly used in spoken French language to talk about past actions. The other main past tenses in French are the imparfait  and the passé simple .

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To conjugate the passé   composé , we use the auxiliary verb avoir  or être , followed by the past participle of the verb. In this post, we’ll guide you through the various usages of this French   past   tense , how to determine which auxiliary verb to use, and how to correctly conjugate them. So by the end of this post, you’ll know everything you need about le passé   composé  in French!

When to use the French past tense passé composé

The passé   composé  is a French   past   tense mainly used to talk about past events that are finished in the present. In this section we’ll cover the different contexts in which we use the passé   composé  in the French language, illustrated by various examples.

To talk about a past event that is finished in the present

The primary usage of the passé   composé  is to talk about events that took place in the past and are no longer happening in the present.

• This morning, I   had   breakfast  with Martin. – Ce matin, j’ai   déjeuné  avec Martin.
• She   arrived  late in the evening. – Elle   est   arrivée  tard dans la soirée.

To refer to a unique past event

The passé   composé  is also used to refer to past events that can only happen once.

• He   was   born  in 1993. – Il   est   né  en 1993

To talk about past events with a specific duration

When we speak about a past event with a specific duration, we use the passé   composé in French. Usually, that duration is indicated by a French preposition  of time, such as “à”, “de”, or “pendant.”

• I   worked  at Galeries Lafayettes between 2016 and 2019. – J’ai   travaillé  aux Galeries Lafayettes de 2016 à 2019.
• She   studied French for the first three years of her Bachelor’s degree. – Elle   a   étudié  le français pendant les trois premières années de sa licence.

To talk about successive actions

We use the passé   composé  to describe completed past actions that are following each other.

• This morning I   woke   up  early, I   drank  my coffee, I   exercised  a bit, and then I   went  to work. – Ce matin je  me suis   levé  de bonne heure, j’ai   bu  mon café, j’ai   fait  un peu de sport et ensuite je   suis   parti  au travail.

That’s why the passé   composé is often used rather than the passé simple to narrate the main actions.

• You won’t believe what happened ! She   stormed   out  of the room and threw  everything up in the air. – Tu ne vas pas croire ce qu’ il   s’est   passé  ! Elle   est   sortie en furie de la pièce et a  tout balancé  en l’air.

To talk about the repetition of an action

The passé   composé  is used to talk about the repetition of the same action.

• I   went   to visit  her at the hospital several times this week. – Je   suis   allé  la voir plusieurs fois à l’hôpital cette semaine.
• I   ate outside every day of the week. – J’ai   mangé dehors tous les jours de la semaine.

To make a statement that was true in the past and still is

We can also use the passé   composé  to express affirmations that were true before and still are.

• I always loved  spending my Sundays with her. – J’ai  toujours adoré  passer mes dimanches avec elle.
• I never accepted  one penny from him and I never will. – Je   n’ai  jamais accepté  un centime de sa part et je ne le ferai jamais.

To show a change in a past situation

Using the passé   composé  also helps to convey the meaning of a sudden change to highlight this action.

• I was asleep when suddenly my   phone   rang.  – Je dormais quand soudainement mon   téléphone   a   sonné .

To talk about a future completed action

Sometimes this French past tense can also be used to talk about a future action. It’s the case when this future action is already considered finished when talking about it.

• He   has  soon finished  his interview. – Il   a  bientôt terminé  son entretien.
• Wait for me, I’m  almost done . – Attends-moi, j’ai presque terminé .

To make a hypothesis with a future tense or imperative

Similarly, the passé   composé  can also be used to talk about a hypothetical action that will have finished taking place before another action that’s expressed in the future or imperative.

• If you   haven’t   returned  at 8 o’clock, I will leave without you. – Si tu   n’es pas revenu  à 8 heures, je partirai sans toi.

How to conjugate the passé composé

Now that you’re familiar with the different usages of the passé   composé , let’s see how it is conjugated. As a compound tense, this French   past   tense  is formed with the present tense of the auxiliary verb avoir or être , followed by the past participle of the main verb .

For instance, with the verb “aller” (to go), the passé composé conjugation goes like this:

•   I   went  home. – Je   suis   allé  à la maison.

To use the passé   composé , you must hence know which auxiliary verb to use between avoir  and être , properly conjugate them, form the past participle, and make sure it correctly agrees with the subject. So, let’s continue to find out how to do all this!

How to choose between “être” and “avoir”

In French, there are two auxiliary verbs: “être” (to be) and “avoir” (to have). Most of the verbs in passé   composé  are formed with the auxiliary verb “avoir.” The auxiliary verb “être” is used with a specific subset of French verbs, as well as with reflexive verbs.

Verbs that use “avoir” in the passé composé

Most verbs are formed with the auxiliary verb “avoir.” The passé composé conjugation is constructed with the present tense of “avoir” followed by the past participle of the action verb.

For example, here’s how to conjugate “donner” (to give) in passé   composé :

To learn more about this auxiliary verb, we have a full post on avoir conjugation and meanings .

Verbs that use “être” in the passé composé

A few verbs are formed in a similar way, but with the auxiliary verb être .  Let’s check out how we form the passé   composé  with être , with the example of the verb “devenir” (to become):

To learn more about this auxiliary verb, see our post covering the French verb être .

There are only a few verbs that take “être” as their auxiliary verb in compound conjugations. They are the 14 verbs expressing movement or a status change. Here’s the list you’ll have to learn by heart:

Note that other verbs that are derivations of these ones, such as “revenir” (to come back) or “renaître” (to be reborn) are also conjugated with the auxiliary verb être .

In addition to this list of French être verbs, we also uses the auxiliary verb être  with the passé   composé  for all the reflexive verbs  such as “se laver” (to take a shower), “s’asseoir” (to sit), “s’amuser” (to have fun), etc. Let’s see their conjugation with the example of “se laver”.

Pay attention to the placement of the ne… pas  when using negation with reflexive verbs in the passé composé: the ne  goes before the reflexive pronoun, while pas  goes between the conjugated auxiliary verb and the past participle.

• I   didn’t   brush  my teeth. – Je   ne   me   suis   pas   lavé  les dents.

Verbs that can take either “être” or “avoir”

Depending on the meaning they convey, some verbs can be conjugated either with “être” or with “avoir.” The key to using “être” is that the action is being done on the subject, while if the action is being done by someone else then it can take “avoir.”

• She   went up  to the second floor. – Elle   est   montée  au deuxième étage.
• We   got   her   up  to the second floor – Nous   l’avons   montée  au deuxième étage.
• She   is   divorced . – Elle   est   divorcée .
• She   divorced . – Elle   a   divorcé .

Passé composé: How to form the past participle

Now that you have your auxiliary verb, you can continue forming your sentence! To build the past participle, you need to determine to which group the verb belongs, by looking at its infinitive .

If it’s a verb from the first group, with the infinitive ending in –er , the participle ends in é .

• He has   eaten cheese. – Il   a   mangé du fromage.

If it’s a verb from the second group, with the infinitive ending in –ir , the participle ends in i .

• They   finished  their homework. – Ils   ont   fini  leurs devoirs.

If it’s a verb from the third group, with the infinitive ending in –re , the participle ends in u .

• I   sold  my house. – J’ai   vendu  ma maison.

For the irregular verbs, you need to refer to the specific participle form for each one.

Agreements of the past participle

Let us tell you a secret: many native French speakers cannot correctly make the agreements in passé composé! But don’t be afraid! It’s not that complicated, as long as you know the following rules.

When the passé   composé  is formed with the auxiliary verb “avoir”, the past participle does not change form to agree in gender and number with the subject.

• They   lost  their game – Elles   ont   perdu  leur match.

There is an exception to this rule on verbs that take the auxiliaury verb “avoir,” however, and it comes down to word order in a sentence. In sentence structures where the direct object comes before  the past participle, the past participle needs to agree in gender and number with the direct object .

• These are the pictures she   took . You’ve  already seen  them?  – Ce sont les photographies qu’ elle   a   prises . Tu  les as  déjà vues ?

When the passé   composé  is formed with the auxiliary verb “être,” the past participle always agrees in gender and number with the subject .

• She   went to the hairdresser. – Elle   est   allée  chez la coiffeuse.
• They   left around 8 P.M. – Ils   sont   partis  vers 20 heures.

Likewise, for reflexive verbs (which are always conjugated with “être”), the past participle usually agrees with the subject… except when the sentence structure calls for it to agree with the direct object as we saw above.

• She   washed  her hands. – Elle   s’est   lavée  les mains.

Conclusion: The passé composé

Alongside the imparfait , the passé   composé  is one of the two French   past   tenses  that you will encounter the most. This is particularly true in the spoken French language where it is almost always used to talk about the past.

With the passé   composé , the main difficulty is knowing whether to use the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être,” and whether the past participle should remain unchanged or if it needs to agree with the subject or the direct object.

Once you master the passé composé  rules we covered here, you’ll be using this French past tense just like native speakers!

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The Different Past Tenses in French

Le Passé - Passé composé v Imparfait

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One of the most striking differences between French and English is in verb tenses. Learning how to use the various past tenses can be very tricky because English has several tenses which either do not exist in or do not translate literally into French - and vice versa.

During the first year of French study, every student becomes aware of the troublesome relationship between the two main past tenses. The imperfect [je mangeais] translates to the English imperfect [I was eating] while the passé composé [j'ai mangé] literally translates to the English present perfect [I have eaten] but can also be translated as the English simple past [I ate] or the emphatic past [I did eat].

It is extremely important to understand the distinctions between the passé composé and imperfect in order to use them correctly and thus express past events accurately. Before you can compare them, however, be sure that you understand each tense individually, as this will make it a lot easier to figure out how they work together.

Generally speaking, the imperfect  describes past situations , while the passé composé  narrates specific events . In addition, the imperfect can set the stage for an event expressed with the passé composé. Compare the uses of these two tenses:

1. Incomplete vs Complete

The imperfect describes an ongoing action with no specified completion:

• J'allais en France.  - I was going to France .
• Je visitais des monuments et prenais des photos.  - I was visiting monuments and taking pictures

The passé composé expresses one or more events or actions that began and ended in the past:

• Je suis allé en France.  - I went to France.
• J'ai visité des monuments et pris des photos.  - I visited some monuments and took some pictures.

2. Habitual vs Occasional

The imperfect is used for habitual or repeated actions, something that happened an uncounted number of times:

• Je voyageais en France tous les ans.  - I traveled (used to travel) to France every year.
• Je visitais souvent le Louvre.  - I often visited the Louvre.

The passé composé talks about a single event, or an event that happened a specific number of times:

• J'ai voyagé en France l'année dernière.  - I traveled in France last year.
• J'ai visité le Louvre trois fois.  - I've visited the Louvre three times.

3. Ongoing vs New

The imperfect describes a general physical or mental state of being:

• J'avais peur des chiens.  - I was afraid of dogs.
• J'aimais les épinards.  - I used to like spinach.

The passé composé indicates a change in physical or mental state at a precise moment or for an isolated cause:

• J'ai eu peur quand le chien a aboyé.  - I was scared when the dog barked.
• Pour la première fois, j'ai aimé les épinards.  - For the first time, I liked spinach.

4. Background + Interruption

The imperfect and passé composé sometimes work together - the imperfect provides a description/background info, to set the scene of how things were or what was happening (past tense of "be" + verb with -ing usually indicates this) when something (expressed with the passé composé) interrupted.

• J'étais à la banque quand Chirac est arrivé.  - I was at the bank when Chirac arrived.
• Je vivais en Espagne quand je l'ai trouvé.  - I was living in Spain when I found it.

Note:  There is a third tense, the  passé simple , which technically translates to the English simple past tense, but is now used primarily in writing,  in place of the passé composé.

• Quand j'avais 15 ans, je voulais être psychiatre. Je m'intéressais à la psychologie parce que je connaissais beaucoup de gens très bizarres. Le week-end, j'allais à la bibliothèque et j'étudiais pendant toute la journée.
• When I was 15, I wanted to be a psychiatrist. I was interested in psychology because I knew a lot of really weird people. On the weekends, I used to go to the library and study all day.

Passé composé

• Un jour, je suis tombé malade et j'ai découvert les miracles de la médecine. J'ai fait la connaissance d'un médecin et j'ai commencé à étudier avec lui. Quand la faculté de médecine m'a accepté, je n'ai plus pensé à la psychologie.
• One day, I got sick and discovered the wonders of medicine. I met a doctor and started studying with him. After the medical school accepted me, I didn't think about psychology any more.

The following key words and phrases tend to be used with either the imperfect or the passé composé, so when you see any of them, you know which tense you need:

Some French verbs are used primarily in the imperfect, while others have different meanings depending on which tense they are used in. Learn more about  advanced past tenses . There is a third tense, the passé simple, which technically translates to the English simple past tense, but is now used primarily in writing, as the  literary equivalent  of the passé composé.

• Passé composé: French Compound Past Tense
• The French Recent Past: 'Passé Récent'
• Learn the French Imperfect Past Tense
• Advanced French Past Tenses
• French Verb Avoir Conjugation
• Simple Conjugations for the French Verb, 'Ouvrir,' Meaning 'to Open'
• How to Conjugate the French Verb "Bénir" (to Bless)
• French Verb Être Conjugation
• The French Past Tense, or Passé Simple
• How to Conjugate "Visiter" (to Visit) in French
• Conjugating the Regular French Verb 'Aimer' ('to Like, Love')
• How to Use the French Prepositions 'Depuis,' 'Pendant,' and 'Pour'
• How to Conjugate "Descendre" (To Go Down, Descend)
• French Verbs That Take 'Être' as Their Auxiliary Verb
• French Verb Faire Conjugation
• How to Conjugate the French Verb Grossir

• Passe compose conjugation
• How to do passe compose in French
• Common Verbs in Passé Composé: aller, prendre, descendre, savoir, sortir, rentrer
• Other Verbs in Passé Composé: naître, écrire, devenir, dormir, revenir, ouvrir, pleuvoir, attendre

Le Passé Composé: Learning the French Past Tense

Author: Olya M.

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I received the Bachelor's degree in Foreign Languages with honours at Ivan Franko National University of Lviv.

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Verb "travel"

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Conjugation

Simple tense.

Present Simple

• he, she travels
• they travel

Past Simple

• I traveled ; travelled
• you traveled ; travelled
• he, she traveled ; travelled
• we traveled ; travelled
• they traveled ; travelled

Future Simple

• I will travel
• you will travel
• he, she will travel
• we will travel
• they will travel

Continuous Tense

Present Simple Continuous

• I am traveling ; travelling
• you are traveling ; travelling
• he, she is traveling ; travelling
• we are traveling ; travelling
• they are traveling ; travelling

Past Simple Continuous

• I was traveling ; travelling
• you were traveling ; travelling
• he, she was traveling ; travelling
• we were traveling ; travelling
• they were traveling ; travelling

Future Simple Continuous

• I will be traveling ; travelling
• you will be traveling ; travelling
• he, she will be traveling ; travelling
• we will be traveling ; travelling
• they will be traveling ; travelling

Perfect Tense

Present Perfect

• I have traveled ; travelled
• you have traveled ; travelled
• he, she has traveled ; travelled
• we have traveled ; travelled
• they have traveled ; travelled

Past Perfect

• I had traveled ; travelled
• you had traveled ; travelled
• he, she had traveled ; travelled
• we had traveled ; travelled
• they had traveled ; travelled

Future Perfect

• I will have traveled ; travelled
• you will have traveled ; travelled
• he, she will have traveled ; travelled
• we will have traveled ; travelled
• they will have traveled ; travelled

Perfect Continuous Tense

Present Perfect Continuous

• I have been traveling ; travelling
• you have been traveling ; travelling
• he, she has been traveling ; travelling
• we have been traveling ; travelling
• they have been traveling ; travelling

Past Perfect Continuous

• I had been traveling ; travelling
• you had been traveling ; travelling
• he, she had been traveling ; travelling
• we had been traveling ; travelling
• they had been traveling ; travelling

Future Perfect Continuous

• I will have been traveling ; travelling
• you will have been traveling ; travelling
• he, she will have been traveling ; travelling
• we will have been traveling ; travelling
• they will have been traveling ; travelling

Conditional

• I would travel
• you would travel
• he, she would travel
• we would travel
• they would travel
• I would have traveled ; travelled
• you would have traveled ; travelled
• he, she would have traveled ; travelled
• we would have traveled ; travelled
• they would have traveled ; travelled

Present Continuous

• I would be traveling ; travelling
• you would be traveling ; travelling
• he, she would be traveling ; travelling
• we would be traveling ; travelling
• they would be traveling ; travelling

Perfect Continuous

• I would have been traveling ; travelling
• you would have been traveling ; travelling
• he, she would have been traveling ; travelling
• we would have been traveling ; travelling
• they would have been traveling ; travelling
• we Let's travel

Other verbs

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Verb Table for travel

• Simple tenses
• Continuous tenses

Conditional

Simple tenses  •  continuous tenses  •  conditional  •  imperative  •  impersonal, present perfect, past perfect, will -future, going to -future, future perfect, conditional past, past participle, browse the conjugations (verb tables), look up "travel" in other languages, links to further information.

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Past Tense of Travel: Traveling Back in Time

By: Author Oliver

Posted on Last updated: August 12, 2023

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Welcome to our article on the past tense of travel! If you’re learning English grammar, you know that understanding verb tenses is an essential part of the language. The past tense is particularly important, as it allows us to talk about events and experiences that have already happened. In this article, we’ll explore the basics of English tenses, give an overview of the past tense, and focus specifically on how to use the past tense when talking about travel.

Travel is one of the most common topics of conversation, and being able to talk about past trips is a great way to connect with others and share experiences. However, using the past tense correctly can be tricky, especially when it comes to irregular verbs and complex sentence structures. In this article, we’ll provide plenty of examples and exercises to help you master the past tense of travel. We’ll also cover some common mistakes to avoid and provide additional resources for further learning.

So whether you’re planning your next trip or just want to improve your English skills, read on to learn everything you need to know about the past tense of travel!

Key Takeaways

• The past tense is essential for talking about past events and experiences, past tense of ‘travel’ is ‘traveled’
• By practicing with examples and exercises, you can improve your use of the past tense of travel and avoid common mistakes.

Past Tense of Travel

Travel is a verb that is commonly used in the past tense. In this section, we will cover the formation and usage examples of the past tense of travel.

To form the past tense of travel, we add “-ed” to the base form of the verb. For example:

• I traveled to Europe last summer.
• She traveled to Asia for business.
• We traveled to South America for vacation.

Simple Past

The simple past is used to describe a completed action in the past. Regular verbs like travel are formed by adding -ed to the base form. For example:

• I traveled to Paris last year.

Past Continuous

The past continuous is used to describe an action that was in progress at a specific point in the past. It is formed by using the past tense of “to be” (was/were) and the present participle (-ing) of the main verb. Here are some examples:

• I was traveling to Paris when I got a call from my boss.

Usage Examples

The past tense of travel is used to talk about a completed action in the past. Here are some examples:

• I traveled to Japan last year and had an amazing time.
• She traveled to Italy for her honeymoon and fell in love with the country.
• We traveled to Mexico for our anniversary and enjoyed the beautiful beaches.

We can also use the past tense of travel to talk about a past habit or routine. For example:

• When I was younger, I traveled to different countries every summer.
• She traveled for work every week and got used to living out of a suitcase.
• We traveled to visit our family every holiday season.

In conclusion, the past tense of travel is formed by adding “-ed” to the base form of the verb and is used to talk about completed actions or past habits. Practice using the past tense of travel in your own sentences to improve your English grammar skills.

Common Mistakes with Past Tense of Travel

If you are learning English, you might be struggling with the past tense of the verb “travel.” Here are some common mistakes people make and how to avoid them.

Mixing Past and Present Tenses

One of the most common mistakes is mixing past and present tenses. For example, saying “I travel to Paris last year” instead of “I traveled to Paris last year.” To avoid this mistake, remember to use the past tense of “travel” when referring to something that happened in the past.

Using the Present Participle

Another mistake is using the present participle instead of the past tense. For example, saying “I am traveling to London last week” instead of “I traveled to London last week.” To avoid this mistake, remember to use the past tense of “travel” when referring to something that happened in the past.

Using the Wrong Auxiliary Verb

Using the wrong auxiliary verb is also a common mistake. For example, saying “I was travel to Rome” instead of “I traveled to Rome.” To avoid this mistake, remember to use the correct auxiliary verb (in this case, “did”) when forming the past tense.

Example Sentences

Here are some example sentences to help you practice using the past tense of “travel” correctly:

• I traveled to Japan last summer.
• She visited her grandparents in Florida last month.
• They took a road trip across the United States.
• We flew to Paris for our honeymoon.
• He backpacked through Europe after college.

Remember, practice makes perfect! Keep practicing using the past tense of “travel” correctly, and soon it will become second nature.

Exercises to Practice Past Tense of Travel

Learning English grammar can be challenging, especially when it comes to mastering the past tense of travel. To help you improve your skills, we have compiled a list of exercises that you can use to practice and perfect your past tense of travel.

Interactive Exercises

Interactive exercises are a great way to practice the past tense of travel. They allow you to engage with the material and receive immediate feedback on your progress. Here are a few interactive exercises you can try:

• Fill in the Blank: In this exercise, you will be given a sentence with a blank space where the past tense verb should go. Your task is to fill in the blank with the correct past tense verb. For example, “I ___ to Paris last year.” The correct answer would be “went.”
• Matching: In this exercise, you will be given a list of past tense verbs and a list of travel-related words. Your task is to match the past tense verb with the correct travel-related word. For example, “flew” would match with “airplane.”

Written Exercises

Written exercises are another great way to practice the past tense of travel. They allow you to focus on the material and practice at your own pace. Here are a few written exercises you can try:

• Sentence Writing: In this exercise, you will be given a travel-related word, and your task is to write a sentence using the correct past tense verb. For example, “train” could be used in the sentence, “I ___ to New York on a train.”
• Paragraph Writing: In this exercise, you will be given a prompt related to travel, and your task is to write a paragraph using the correct past tense verbs. For example, “Write a paragraph about your last vacation.” You could write, “Last summer, I ___ to Hawaii with my family. We ___ on the beach, ___ in the ocean, and ___ at some amazing restaurants.”

By practicing these exercises, you will improve your understanding and mastery of the past tense of travel. Keep practicing, and before you know it, you’ll be a pro at English grammar!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the past tense of travel?

The past tense of travel is “traveled” in American English and “travelled” in British English. Both spellings are correct, but American English tends to drop the second “l” in the past tense and past participle forms of the verb.

Is it spelled Travelled or traveled?

As mentioned above, both spellings are correct. The difference in spelling is due to the variation in American and British English.

Which is correct travel or travelling?

Both “travel” and “travelling” are correct, but “traveling” is the preferred spelling in American English, while “travelling” is the preferred spelling in British English.

What’s the difference between travel and Travelled?

“Travel” is the present tense of the verb, while “travelled” is the past tense. The difference between the two is the time frame in which the action occurs.

What is the V2 form of travel?

The V2 form of travel is “traveled” in American English and “travelled” in British English.

What is the V3 form of travel?

The V3 form of travel is “traveled” in American English and “travelled” in British English.

In summary, the past tense of travel is “traveled” in American English and “travelled” in British English. Both spellings are correct, and the difference in spelling is due to the variation in American and British English. Additionally, “traveling” is the preferred spelling in American English, while “travelling” is the preferred spelling in British English.

The past tense of travel is \"traveled\" in American English and \"travelled\" in British English. Both spellings are correct, but American English tends to drop the second \"l\" in the past tense and past participle forms of the verb.

"}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Is it spelled Travelled or traveled?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"

"}},{"@type":"Question","name":"Which is correct travel or travelling?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"

Both \"travel\" and \"travelling\" are correct, but \"traveling\" is the preferred spelling in American English, while \"travelling\" is the preferred spelling in British English.

"}},{"@type":"Question","name":"What's the difference between travel and Travelled?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"

\"Travel\" is the present tense of the verb, while \"traveled\" is the past tense. The difference between the two is the time frame in which the action occurs.

"}},{"@type":"Question","name":"What is the V2 form of travel?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"

The V2 form of travel is \"traveled\" in American English and \"travelled\" in British English.

"}},{"@type":"Question","name":"What is the V3 form of travel?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"

The V3 form of travel is \"traveled\" in American English and \"travelled\" in British English.

In summary, the past tense of travel is \"traveled\" in American English and \"travelled\" in British English. Both spellings are correct, and the difference in spelling is due to the variation in American and British English. Additionally, \"traveling\" is the preferred spelling in American English, while \"travelling\" is the preferred spelling in British English.

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Travel Past Tense

Commonwealth travelled, US traveled past tense of travel is Commonwealth travelled, US traveled.

Travel verb forms

Conjugation of travel.

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PastTenses is a database of English verbs. One can check verbs forms in different tenses. Use our search box to check present tense, present participle tense, past tense and past participle tense of desired verb.

‘The Sympathizer’ depicts war from a Vietnamese point of view, but how does the community see it?

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Never before has a television series garnered so much excitement, attention and concern among California’s expatriate Vietnamese community, the world’s largest, as “ The Sympathizer .”

HBO’s seven-part espionage thriller depicting the Vietnam War and its aftermath — or the American War, as seen on the title card that opens the series — premiered Sunday and new episodes will air weekly through May 26. It was co-created by South Korean director Park Chan-wook and Don McKellar , and features Oscar-winning actor Robert Downey Jr. in several roles (he is also an executive producer). “The Sympathizer” is based on Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name, which follows a French Vietnamese communist spy.

The series is groundbreaking for casting actors who are Vietnamese or of Vietnamese descent in lead roles and much of the dialogue is spoken in Vietnamese, though it was made for American audiences. And the opening episode takes place in Vietnam, depicting the fall of Saigon and a harrowing escape on an airstrip.

For a younger generation, the series is an opportunity to showcase Vietnamese stories globally, but for an older generation, “The Sympathizer” has stirred some discontent, especially among those who fought in the war. They point to the show’s lead character, the Captain — a communist spy who infiltrates the South Vietnamese army and follows the General, his boss, to Los Angeles, where they resettle — saying it glorifies the communists, the enemy — by presenting the spy’s disparaging viewpoints about the South.

How the creators of HBO’s ‘The Sympathizer’ explore the ‘American War’ through a Vietnamese lens

Park Chan-wook and Don McKellar, the creators of HBO’s ‘The Sympathizer,’ discuss how they adapted Viet Thanh Nguyen’s 2015 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel.

April 11, 2024

Such sentiments were among those shared at a viewing party organized by Alan Vo Ford, held at Pink Moon, a Chinese restaurant in Beverly Hills, where the premiere episode was streamed for 30 friends from the Los Angeles and Orange County area on Sunday. Ford, 49, a Westminster resident, real estate broker and film producer of Vietnamese movies such as “A Fragile Flower” and “Journey From the Fall,” said he felt compelled to organize the event because it’s so rare for a major Hollywood series about Vietnamese people to be made.

“I felt it was my duty as a Vietnamese American to spread the word so the world would know about Vietnam and American history during this historic period of time,” he said. Ford said when he was a baby, his mother held him while “running and dodging bombs during the final days,” just like in the last scenes of the first episode. His father was in a reeducation camp for 9 years, and his family arrived in the U.S. in 1985.

“This is a breakthrough series for the Vietnamese community to be on HBO and work with superstars like Robert Downey Jr.,” said Don Nguyen, 55, a retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel and cybersecurity consultant, who attended the party. He said that as someone who was part of the first generation of Vietnamese to join the U.S. military, he knows what it’s like to break barriers. “It’s a signal to the global community that we’ve arrived in Hollywood.”

“We have many talented doctors, lawyers, engineers [in the community]. But in films we’re still in the infant stage,” he said. He’s the son of Thanh Tuyen, a Vietnamese singer whose trademark Bolero songs were popular during the war.

Despite some of the generational differences, there is agreement in the community that this is a significant moment for Vietnamese representation in Hollywood that furthers their desire for more Vietnamese stories to be told.

And that’s what Viet Thanh Nguyen advocated for, to have the series, like his book, present a Vietnamese point of view on the war. He said that for too long, Hollywood has portrayed “Vietnamese characters to be killed, raped, wounded, silenced, demonized, or rescued while we serve as the backdrop for American moral dilemmas.” The war and its aftermath have been depicted in pop culture largely through an American lens in films such as “Apocalypse Now” and “Rambo.”

“We should have at least as many Vietnamese perspectives on this war being told as we have American perspectives,” he said.

Viet Thanh Nguyen tackles Vietnam War’s aftermath in ‘The Sympathizer’

Much of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s debut novel, “The Sympathizer” (Grove: 371 pp., $26), takes place in the bland stucco flatlands of Los Angeles between the fall of Saigon in 1975 and the staging and aftermath of a failed counterrevolution by members of the displaced anti-communist Vietnamese diaspora several years later.

April 10, 2015

The cast of the series is predominantly Vietnamese, with Hoa Xuande, an Australian actor of Vietnamese descent, in the lead role as the Captain. Other actors in supporting roles include Kieu Chinh , Toan Le, Fred Nguyen Khan, Vy Le, Nguyen Cao Ky Duyen and Alan Trong.

“This is a historical moment for Vietnamese artists, writers and filmmakers in Hollywood,” said Chinh, an acclaimed Vietnamese actress who plays the mother of the Major (Phanxinê, a Vietnamese filmmaker in his acting debut), a character whose story comes into focus midseason. She knows firsthand what the war was like, having lived through it. The chaotic evacuation scene at the end of the first episode was familiar.

“I heard loud bomb explosions all around us as we were trying to flee. It was frightening and very emotional,” Chinh said. “During the filming, I just relived my past. I didn’t have to act.”

The actor is well-known for her role as Suyuan Woo in 1993’s “ The Joy Luck Club ,” an adaptation of Amy Tan’s bestselling novel. It marked the first time that a film featuring a nearly all-Asian cast was a Hollywood box office success. However, despite the film’s success, it did not bring an increase in Asian-centered films or roles for Asian actors then. Chinh said she believes that “The Joy Luck Club” was too early for a breakthrough. Now, she thinks that it is time for a Vietnamese series to be featured on mainstream TV.

Anna Chi, a filmmaker whose work includes “ The Disappearance of Mrs. Wu ,” worked on “The Joy Luck Club” as a director’s assistant while studying at UCLA’s film school; she attended the viewing party with her husband, Douglas Smith, a visual-effects Oscar winner for “Independence Day.” She agrees with Chinh that “The Joy Luck Club” was ahead of its time. Although progress has been made, Chi said there is still much work to be done for Asian cinema. She sees “The Sympathizer” as an important step toward this goal.

‘The Sympathizer’ is a tense black comedy that’s also a moving story about friendship

HBO’s adaptation of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize-winning post-Vietnam novel is the portrait of a divided people and a divided person.

April 13, 2024

While “The Sympathizer” isn’t the first time a story from a Vietnamese point of view has been told, previous efforts haven’t been as well received because of tensions that have lingered since the war. In January 1994, when Le Ly Hayslip , author of “When Heaven and Earth Changed Places,” visited Orange County on a press tour for the Oliver Stone film based on her memoir, dozens of protesters called her a traitor. It was billed as the first movie about the Vietnam War from a Vietnamese perspective, but anticommunist protesters were incensed that she had aided Viet Cong soldiers.

The premiere of “The Sympathizer” comes two weeks before the 49th anniversary of the fall of Saigon on April 30, known as Black April or Tháng tư đen in Vietnamese. The Vietnam War, the second longest war in U.S. history, killed hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese people and American soldiers. For those who fought on the side of the South and were displaced, the wounds from the war remain unhealed.

“Viet sensationalized things to fit the American spy novel and from that perspective, the show is very intriguing to the viewers. He wrote it from the perspective of a Viet Cong communist spy and therefore the South Vietnamese were depicted as corrupted and cruel,” said Quan Nguyen, a physician and director of the Museum of the Republic of Vietnam , a nonprofit in Little Saigon in Orange County. It was opened in 2016 to honor veterans who fought for South Vietnam and to educate future generations.

“This could reopen a lot of deep wounds within our anticommunist community,” says Quan Nguyen, whose father was an army physician.

Jenny Thai, 58, a guest at the viewing party who is from Garden Grove, agrees. Thai said it has inspired her to make a film of her own that highlights South Vietnamese heroes. She recalls when she was a child in Vietnam, in the final days of the war, everyone was huddled around the radio and the announcement came that Saigon had fallen, and the adults around her broke down in tears. Weeks later, all the men and women associated with the former regime were sent to reeducation camps. She says her family later escaped Vietnam by boat in 1990.

“Most of the Saigoners stayed home and listened to the radio. It was the only way we could follow what was going on,” says Thai, who has produced short films. “Only a small portion of those who worked with the embassy or with U.S. officers knew about the evacuation.”

She adds, “I’m anticommunist, but I don’t hate the Northerners. We are all Vietnamese; we are all brothers and sisters from the same country. It’s the politics that destroyed us, the war.”

Though there are differing views, “The Sympathizer” has nonetheless spurred conversations about representation in Hollywood, how the story of the war is told and by whom. Ysa Le, executive director of the Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association, a nonprofit that co-hosted a “Sympathizer” screening and press meeting with the show’s cast in Orange a week before its debut, says she welcomes the series.

“For the first time, we have so many Vietnamese talents, both in front of and behind the camera working on this American series,” said Le, 53, a pharmacist in Fountain Valley. She was 5 when the war ended, and her father was sent to a reeducation camp for six years after being unable to flee Vietnam.

“It could inspire aspiring filmmakers to pursue their own projects,” Le said.

Phong Dinh, 91, a former two-term councilman of the seaside resort city of Vung Tau, Vietnam, who spent three years in a reeducation camp, said he understands the antipathy toward the communists, but the spy character created by Viet Thanh Nguyen and depicted in the series doesn’t bother him.

“It was a well-known fact they infiltrated our government since President [Ngo Dinh] Diem’s regime, and continued with President [Nguyen Van] Thieu,” he said. A father of seven, Dinh experienced tragedy after the war, losing his youngest daughter to malaria because no medication was available, and his wife suffered permanent hearing damage from an artillery explosion near their home.

Now a Huntington Beach resident, Dinh joined his youngest son, Viet, former Fox Corp. chief legal officer and U.S. assistant attorney general, to watch the premiere episode. He gave it an A+.

“Our people have suffered immeasurably. I’m blessed to have my family. I want my children and their children to be good citizens, contribute to society in America and help our people,” he said. “If this TV series opens doors for our younger Vietnamese, then it’s worth it.”

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