I. An action completed in the past
As-tu étudié ce weekend ?
Did you study this weekend?
Ils ont déjà mangé.
They have already eaten.
II. An action repeated a number of times in the past
Oui, j'ai mangé cinq fois hier.
Yes, I did eat five times yesterday.
Nous avons visité Paris plusieurs fois.
We've visited Paris several times.
III. A series of actions completed in the past
Quand je suis arrivé, j'ai vu les fleurs.
When I arrived, I saw the flowers.
Samedi, il a vu sa mère, a parlé au médicin et a trouvé un chat.
Saturday he saw his mother, talked to the doctor, and found a cat.
Related lesson: Repeating auxiliary verbs
The passé composé has three possible English equivalents. For example, j'ai dansé can mean
- I danced (simple past)
- I have danced (present perfect)
- I did dance (past emphatic)
Go on to page 2 to learn how to conjugate the passé composé.
Passé composé quiz
