Sequence of Tenses - Concordance des temps
Learn which tense pairs to use in complex French sentences
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When speaking French (or any other language), it is important to use the correct sequence of tenses. In complex sentences, there is a relationship between the verb in the main clause and the verb in the subordinate clause. Using the correct sequence of tenses is just as important as conjugating the verbs correctly and using the appropriate mood.
For example, in French you can't say "Je ne savais pas que tu es étudiant" - you have to say Je ne savais pas que tu étais étudiant. Likewise, in English, you would say "I didn't know you were a student" rather than "I didn't know that you are a student." Because the verb in the main clause is in the past, the verb in the subordinate clause must be in the past as well.
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In order to determine the correct sequence of tenses, you need to start by examining the temporal relationship between the verbs in the two clauses. The action of the verb in the main clause may occur before, during, or after the action of the subordinate verb. It is this temporal relationship that dictates the sequence of tenses. Although the French sequence of tenses is usually the same as the English sequence, there are some exceptions, so don't rely on your English knowledge to determine the correct sequence of tenses in French.
The following table shows the possible relationships between the tenses in the main and subordinate clauses. The "action" column indicates whether the action of the main verb occurs before, during, or after the action of the subordinate verb. Note that you often have a choice of tenses for the subordinate verb, thus it is up to you to choose the tense that expresses the correct nuance. At the same time (pardon the pun), you also need to be sure to use the correct mood: indicative, subjunctive, or conditional.
| Main verb | Action | Subordinate verb | |
| Present | before | Future | J'espère que tu finiras. |
| Subjunctive | Je veux que tu finisses. | ||
| during | Present | Je sais que tu as raison. | |
| Subjunctive | Je doute que tu aies raison. | ||
| after | Passé composé | Je sais qu'il a triché. | |
| Passé simple | Je sais qu'il tricha. | ||
| Imperfect | Je sais qu'il avait raison. | ||
| Pluperfect | Je sais qu'il avait mangé avant notre départ. | ||
| Past subjunctive | Je doute qu'il ait triché. | ||
| Future perfect | Je sais qu'il sera déjà parti. | ||
| Future | before | Future | Je te donnerai un livre que tu aimeras beaucoup. |
| Subjunctive | J'irai à l'ecole avant qu'il ne se réveille. | ||
| during | Present | Il étudiera pendant que je travaille. | |
| Subjunctive | Je l'achèterai bien que tu aies plus d'argent. | ||
| after | Passé composé | J'irai au musée que tu as visité. | |
| Passé simple | J'irai au musée que tu visitas. | ||
| Imperfect | Je verrai le film que tu aimais. | ||
| Pluperfect | J'affirmerai qu'il était parti avant le cours. | ||
| Past subjunctive | Je serai content à condition qu'ils aient étudié. | ||
| Future perfect | Je vous dirai quand nous aurons décidé. | ||
Note that the sequence of tenses for subordinate clauses is identical for main clauses in the present and future.
| Main verb | Action | Subordinate verb | |
| Past | before | Conditional | J'ai promis qu'il serait prêt à midi. |
| Past conditional | Si j'avais su, je t'aurais aidé. | ||
| *Imperfect subjunctive | Je doutais qu'il parlât si bien. | ||
| Present subjunctive | Je doutais qu'il parle si bien. | ||
| during | Passé composé | J'étudiais quand il est arrivé. | |
| Passé simple | J'étudiais quand il arriva. | ||
| Imperfect | Je savais qu'il exaggérait. | ||
| *Imperfect subjunctive | Je voulais qu'il eût raison. | ||
| Present subjunctive | Je voulais qu'il ait raison. | ||
| after | Pluperfect | Je savais qu'il avait triché. | |
| *Pluperfect subjunctive | Je doutais qu'il eût triché. | ||
| Past subjunctive | Je doutais qu'il ait triché. | ||
| Conditional | before | *Imperfect subjunctive | Je voudrais que tu le fisses. |
| Present subjunctive | Je voudrais que tu le fasses. | ||
| during | *Imperfect subjunctive | Je saurais qu'il mentît. | |
| Present subjunctive | Je saurais qu'il mente. | ||
| after | *Pluperfect subjunctive | Je saurais qu'il eût menti | |
| Past subjunctive | Je saurais qu'il ait menti. | ||
*These literary tenses are nearly always replaced by their non-literary
equivalents. The literary tense is the
"official" tense to be used in the construction, but in reality the
imperfect subjunctive and pluperfect subjunctive are obsolete in spoken French and rare in written French.
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