L'Imparfait

When to Use the Imperfect Tense

• To talk about activities you used to do but no longer do now. L'année dernière, je lisais des livres tous les soirs. (Last year, I used to read books every evening.)
• To describe an action that was ongoing before something suddenly interrupted it (often shown in the passé composé). Je faisais mes devoirs quand la sonnette a sonné. (I was doing my homework when the doorbell rang.)
• To depict scenes or situations from the past (descriptions). Le soleil se couchait et les oiseaux volaient dans le ciel. (The sun was setting, and birds were flying across the sky.)
• To express an emotion or feeling. Mon week-end à la plage était fantastique ! (My weekend at the beach was fantastic!)

Formation of the Imperfect Tense

1. Take the nous form of the present tense.
2. Remove the -ons endings.
3. Add the imperfect endings. The imperfect endings:

Je	-ais
Tu	-ais
Il/Elle/On	-ait
Nous	-ions
Vous	-iez
Ils/Elles	-aient

"Danser" (to dance)

French	English Translation
Je dansais	I was dancing
Tu dansais	You were dancing
Il/Elle/On dansait	He/She/One was dancing
Nous dansions	We were dancing
Vous dansiez	You were dancing
Ils/Elles dansaient	They were dancing

"Frémir" (to tremble)

French	English Translation
Je frémissais	I was trembling
Tu frémissais	You were trembling
Il/Elle/On frémissait	He/She/One was trembling
Nous frémissions	We were trembling
Vous frémissiez	You were trembling
Ils/Elles frémissaient	They were trembling

"Rendre" (to return)

French	English Translation
Je rendais	I was returning
Tu rendais	You were returning
Il/Elle/On rendait	He/She/One was returning
Nous rendions	We were returning
Vous rendiez	You were returning
Ils/Elles rendaient	They were returning

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There is ONE exception: Être

• The stem for "être" in the imparfait is "ét-".
• The endings for the imparfait are consistent across all verbs: ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient.

Pronoun	Imparfait Form	English Translation
Je (J')	étais	I was
Tu	étais	You were
Il/Elle/On	était	He/She/One was
Nous	étions	We were
Vous	étiez	You were
Ils/Elles	étaient	They were

• Quand j'étais enfant, je jouais au parc tous les jours. (When I was a child, I played at the park every day.) Habitual action in the past.
• Nous étions très heureux ensemble. (We were very happy together.) Describing an emotion in the past.

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