Online French courses

level A1 to C1

​

How to use the passé composé in French

 

The past tenses in French

​

The different past tenses in French do not necessarily correspond to the English past tenses. Among them, we find the passé composé, the imparfait, the passé simple, the plus-que-parfait, the passé antérieur... This module focuses only on the passé composé, for the other tenses, just have a look at the corresponding modules!

​​

So, let's start. The passé composé can be translated by two different English tenses :

I ate = j'ai mangé

I have eaten = j'ai mangé

 

The context will tell you how j'ai mangé is to be understood.

​

How to build the passé composé

​

You need two elements : être (to be) or avoir (to have) conjugated in the present tense + the past participle of the verb :

​

I ran a lot last month = j'ai beaucoup couru le mois dernier

she came late = elle est venue tard

did he sleep here last week= a-t-il dormi ici la semaine dernière?

Have they arrived yet = sont-ils déjà arrivés?

You haven't tried yet = tu n'as pas encore essayé.

He didn't leave yesterday = il n'est pas parti hier

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​