French - Verb Formations

Front 1

Passé Composé

Back 1

-Tense to refer to actions completed in the past. Used with avoir or etre AND past participle.

-Participle Endings:
-er: é
-ir: i
-re: u

Front 2

Imparfait

Back 2

-used to describe states of being and habitual actions in the past.

-stem of the imparfait is the first person plural (nous) form of the present tense, minus the -ons.

Endings:
-ais -ions
-ais -iez
-ait -aient

*Etre-Only Irregular Stem:
Et-

Front 3

Si + Imp.

Back 3

Si (Suggestions or Wishes):
-Si on achetait une Harley Davidson?
(What if we bought a Harley?)

Wishes:
-Si seulement on avait plus d'argent!
(If only we had more money!)

* "?" indicates a suggestion; "!" indicates a wish

Front 4

Depuis w/ Imp.

Back 4

Something had been goin on when...something happened.

-Tammy attendait Tex depuis une heure quand il est entré

Front 5

Venir de + Imp.

Back 5

Means 'to have just done something.' This is called the recent past (le passé immédiat).

-When venir is conjugated in the imparfait followed by de +infinitive:
-Tex et Tammy venaient de s'embrasser quand Bette est arrivée.

Front 6

Futur Simple

Back 6

Used to refer to future events

Stem: The Infinitive
*-RE Verbs drop the "e" from Inf.

Endings:
-ai -ons
-as -ez
-a -ont

Front 7

Futur Antérieur (Usage)

Back 7

Used for an action that precedes, or will be completed before, another action in the future.

ie.
-Corey et Joe-Bob n'auront pas appris le futur antérieur avant la fin du semestre.
(Corey and Joe-Bob will not have learned the future perfect before the end of the semester.)

Front 8

Futur Antérieur (Formation)

Back 8

is formed with the simple future of the auxiliary (either être or avoir), plus the past participle of the main verb.

Note: with the auxiliary être, the past participle agrees in number and gender with the subject.

Front 9

Futur Antérieur (Avec Conjunctions)

Back 9

French uses the future perfect after certain conjunctions like quand and lorsque (when) or dès que and aussitôt que (as soon as).

ie. Tammy, on parlera dès que tu te seras calmée!
(Tammy, we'll talk when you've calmed down!)

Front 10

Plus-Que-Parfait (Formation)

Back 10

is formed with the auxiliary in the imparfait followed by the past participle of the verb.

ie. J'avais mangé. (I had eaten)

Front 11

Plus-Que-Parfait (Uses)

Back 11

used to express an action which precedes another past action or moment.

ie. Tex n'avait pas fini son poème quand son éditeur a téléphoné.
(Tex had not finished his poem when his editor called.)

*Also commonly used in si clauses followed by the past conditional

Front 12

Conditionnel (Formation)

Back 12

used to refer to hypothetical events

Stem: Infinitive

Endings:
-ais -ions
-ais -iez
-ait -aient

Front 13

Conditionnel (Uses)

Back 13

It is used to express a wish or a suggestion, to make a request, or to accept or extend invitations

ie. Si je gagnais le lot, j'achèterais mon diplôme d'université.
(If I won the lottery, I would buy my university diploma.)

Front 14

Si Clauses with Verbs

Back 14

Si + present -- present, future or imperative.

Si + Imparfait -- Conditionnel

Si + Plus-Que-Parfait -- Conditionnel Passe

Front 15

Conditionnel Passé (Formation)

Back 15

formed with the conditional of the auxiliary (either avoir or être) and the past participle of the main verb.

Formation:
auxiliary in the conditional + past participle

Note: With être the past participle agrees in gender and in number with the subject.

Front 16

Conditionnel Passé (Uses)

Back 16

used to describe or imagine events and actions which failed to happen.

ie. J'aurais aimé être artiste.
(I would have liked to be an artist.)