The difference between the two main French past tenses, the passé composé and the imparfait, is a constant struggle for many French students. In the basic lesson on le passé, you learned about the fundamental differences between these two tenses. In this more advanced lesson, you will learn about the particularities of certain verbs when used in the past.
Usually imperfect
There are some verbs which are nearly always used in the imperfect rather than the passé composé, including
- aimer
- croire
- espérer
- être
- penser
- sembler
- sentir
- J'aimais danser quand j'étais jeune
I liked to dance when I was young
Je croyais en Dieu
I believed in God
J'espérais gagner
I hoped (was hoping) to win
J'étais heureux l'année passée
I was happy last year
Je pensais à mon frère
I was thinking about my brother
Il semblait trop parfait
It seemed too perfect
Je me sentais malade pendant toute la journée
I felt sick all day
- Je n'ai pas aimé le film
I didn't like the movie
Je ne t'ai pas cru quand tu as dit...
I didn't believe you when you said...
Hier, j'ai espéré que tu viendrais ; aujourd'hui, ça m'est égal
Yesterday I hoped you would come; today I don't care
Quand je l'ai vu, j'ai été surpris
When I saw him, I was surprised (just at that moment)
J'ai pensé à une bonne histoire
I thought of a good story
Il a semblé disparaître
He seemed to disappear (all of a sudden)
J'ai senti une goutte de pluie
I felt a drop of rain
Meaning changes
There are a few verbs that have different meanings depending on whether they are used in the passé composé or imparfait. Note that these verbs are usually used in the imperfect; the passé composé meaning is fairly uncommon.
avoir
- imperfect - had
J'avais de l'argent - I had some money
Je n'avais pas assez de temps - I didn't have enough time
J'avais faim - I was hungry
passé composé - had, got, received
J'ai eu un accident - I had / got into an accident
J'ai eu une bonne surprise - I got a nice surprise
J'ai eu faim - I got hungry
- imperfect - knew, was familiar with
Je la connaissais bien - I knew her well
passé composé - met
J'ai connu Michel hier - I met Michel (for the first time) yesterday
- imperfect - was supposed to (whether I did or not)
Je devais partir à midi - I was supposed to leave at noonn
passé composé - must have, had to
J'ai dû le perdre - I must have lost it
J'ai dû partir à midi - I had to leave at noon (and did)
- imperfect - could, was able to (whether I did or not)
Je pouvais mentir - I could lie / was capable of lying
passé composé - could, was able to (and did)
J'ai pu mentir - I was able to lie
Je n'ai pas pu mentir - I couldn't / was unable to lie
- imperfect - knew
Je savais l'adresse - I knew the address
Je savais nager - I knew how to swim
passé composé - learned, found out
J'ai su la solution - I found out / discovered the solution
J'ai su nager - I learned how to swim
- imperfect - wanted
Je voulais partir - I wanted to leave
Je voulais plus d'argent - I wanted more money
passé composé - tried, decided to; (negative) refused
J'ai voulu partir - I tried / decided to leave
Je n'ai pas voulu partir - I refused to leave
Verbal constructions
Some verbs have particular constructions which, when referring to the past, are always in the imperfect:
- aller + infinitive (near future)
J'allais étudier - I was going to study
avoir (with age)
J'avais 18 ans - I was 18
être en train de
J'étais en train d'écrire une lettre - I was writing a letter
faire (with weather)
Il faisait beau - It was nice out
venir de + infinitive (recent past)
Je venais d'arriver - I had just arrived
