In French, the simple past is not normally used in conversation. However, it does have a special role in the French language. This article will present the easiest ways to learn and remember the forms of these two literary tenses.
The Passé Simple and the Passé Antérieur
In French, these are two of the least commonly used forms of verbs. They are rarely spoken. You may hear the passé simple in a formal speech by the President of France, or in formal diplomatic discussions, but the common person only need to recognize the forms for reading literature, in particular classic literature.
Passé Simple
We will begin with the passé simple. The passé simple is the literary version of the passé composé. Conjugating the passé simple is relatively simple. As with all conjugations, the primary key is learning the different endings. This article will present the regular verb forms and the forms of two of the most common irregular verbs, avoir, and être.
Verbs ending in -er, -ir, and -re remove the ending before adding the verb endings.
-ER verbs:
The first, second, and third person singular verb endings are the present tense forms of avoir.
The plural forms change endings:
Nous: -âmes
Vous: -âtes
Ils/Elles: -èrent
Example:
Parler
je parlai / nous parlâmes
tu parlas / vous parlâtes
il/elle/on parla / ils/elles parlèrent
-IR and –RE verbs:
These verbs take the same endings.
Je -is / nous - îmes
Tu -is / vous -îtes
Il/elle/on -it / ils/elles irent
Examples:
Choisir Vendre
Je choisis / nous choisîmes
Tu choisis / vous choisîtes
Il/elle/on choisit / ils/elles choisirent
je vendis / nous vendîmes
tu vendis / vous vendîtes
il/elle/on vendit / ils/elles vendirent
Avoir Être
J’eus / nous eûmes
Tu eus / vous eûtes
Il/elle/on eut / ils/elles eurent
je fus / nous fûmes
tu fus / vous fûtes
il/elle/on fut / ils/elles furent
Passé Antérieur
The Passé Antérieur is strictly a written verb conjugation. It is never spoken and is the literary equivalent of the Plus Perfect tense. Once the passé simple is mastered, the passé antérieur is actually very simple. Its structure is similar to the passé compose, except that the auxiliary verb (avoir or être) is in the passé simple. As with all verbs whose auxiliary verb is être, the past participle must agree in number and gender with the subject.
Examples:
Chanter
j’eus chanté / nous eûmes chanté
tu eus chanté / vous eûtes chanté
il/elle/on eut chanté / ils/elles eurent chanté
Aller
Je fus allé(e) / nous fûmes allé(e)(s)
Tu fus allé(e) / vous fûtes allé(e)(s)
Il/elle/on fut allé(e) / ils/elles furent allé(e)(s)
Anyone who desires to read classic French literature in its original language will need to have a working knowledge of these two tenses.
As you can see, learning the forms of the passé simple and the passé antérieur is not terribly difficult. As with other verb tenses in French, these two tenses follow strict patterns, which once learned, make them significantly easier to master.
