The subjonctif passé in french

06 oct. 2017 12:41 - language-swap

Niveau confirmé

Like the indicative and the conditional, the subjunctive is a mode. It has four different conjugations in order to respect a certain time-line.
The past subjunctive expresses an action that is supposedly over in the time we speak with very much uncertainty.
Example:
Je ne crois pas qu'il soit allé à l'école aujourd'hui.
When the pat subjunctive is used in a relative proposition, the principal proposition is in the indicative mode in present tense. The major part of the time, it is introduced by the relative pronoun “que”.
In order to conjugate the past subjunctive, you have to put the auxiliaries “être” (to be) and “avoir” to have conjugated in the present subjunctive and the past participle of the verb concerned.
Let's see:


AVOIR AVOIR MANGER ETRE ETRE TOMBER
Aie Aie mangé Sois Sois tombé
Aies Aies mangé Sois Sois tombé
Ait Ait mangé Soit Soit tombé
Ayons Ayons mangé Soyons Soyons tombés
Ayez Ayez mangé Soyez Soyez tombés
Aient Aient mangé Soient Soient tombés

To know how to put the verbs in their past participle form, you can check the lesson on it.
However here is some tips:
the verbs finishing in -é are the verbs of the first group (couper, coupé)
the verbs finishing in -i are the verbs finishing in -IR (franchir, franchi)
the verbs finishing in -u are the verbs finishing in -Re (attendre, attendu – entendre, entendu)
the verbs composed with the verb prendre finish in -is (prendre, pris – surprendre, supris – reprendre, repris)

/!\ Warning, remember that the past participle has to agree with the noun when used with the auxiliary “être” or when the direct object is put before the verb with the auxiliary “avoir”.
In order to know which auxiliary you should use, see the lesson on the choice of the auxiliaries “le choix des auxiliaires au passé composé”.