This is the decision every French past-tense sentence forces. There is no neutral past tense — every event you put in the past must be coded either as a passé composé (completed event, definite occurrence) or as an imparfait (ongoing situation, habit, description). English has both options too, but English does not require you to choose: I ate and I was eating are both grammatical and the speaker picks based on emphasis. French requires the choice on every past verb, and picking the wrong one rewrites the meaning.
Once it clicks, the distinction is one of the most beautiful pieces of French grammar — it lets you build a vivid, layered narrative in a way English has to work harder for. Until it clicks, it produces sentences that sound off even when they are grammatically correct word by word. This page covers the core distinction, the reliable heuristics, the narrative use, and the cases that look hard but follow a simple logic.
The core idea: completed events vs background states
The cleanest formulation: passé composé moves the story forward; imparfait holds it still.
The passé composé reports what happened — a finite event, with a beginning and an end, that took place at a specific point or during a specific bounded interval. The imparfait describes what was happening — an ongoing situation, an enduring state, a repeated habit, a setting in which other events take place.
Hier, j'ai mangé une pizza.
Yesterday I ate a pizza. (PC — completed event)
Quand j'étais étudiant, je mangeais beaucoup de pizzas.
When I was a student, I ate a lot of pizzas. (impf — habit)
Pierre est arrivé à dix heures.
Pierre arrived at ten o'clock. (PC — definite point)
Le soleil brillait.
The sun was shining. (impf — description)
Pierre dormait quand je suis entré.
Pierre was sleeping when I came in. (impf for ongoing, PC for the entry)
That last sentence is the prototype of how the two tenses work together. Pierre dormait is the background — what was already going on. Je suis entré is the foreground event — the new thing that happened. Foreground cuts in; background holds.
The four uses of the imparfait
The imparfait does four overlapping jobs. Recognizing which one applies in a given sentence makes the choice automatic.
Description
When you describe what something looked like, felt like, or what state someone was in — that's imparfait. No event is occurring; you are setting a scene.
Il faisait froid et il pleuvait.
It was cold and it was raining.
Elle avait les cheveux longs et portait un manteau noir.
She had long hair and was wearing a black coat.
Le café était plein, l'air sentait le tabac.
The café was full, the air smelled of tobacco.
If you can rewrite the sentence in English with was -ing or with a copula adjective (it was cold, she had long hair), it's almost certainly imparfait.
Habit / repetition
Actions that used to happen regularly, with no fixed endpoint, are imparfait.
Quand j'étais petit, je jouais au foot tous les jours.
When I was little, I used to play football every day.
On allait à la mer chaque été.
We used to go to the seaside every summer.
Mon grand-père fumait la pipe le soir.
My grandfather used to smoke a pipe in the evenings.
The English clue: used to, would (habitually). If the action repeated indefinitely in the past, it's imparfait. If it happened a specific number of times that you are reporting, it's passé composé (j'y suis allé trois fois).
Ongoing action (in progress at a reference point)
When you describe an action that was already underway at the moment you're focusing on, that's imparfait — equivalent to English was -ing.
Quand tu m'as appelé, je dînais.
When you called me, I was having dinner.
Il dormait paisiblement quand l'orage a éclaté.
He was sleeping peacefully when the storm broke.
Elle lisait sur le balcon.
She was reading on the balcony.
The reference point can be set by a quand-clause, by a parallel passé composé event, or just by the surrounding narrative.
State of mind / belief / wanting
Mental and emotional states in the past go in the imparfait by default. Je voulais, je pensais, je savais, j'aimais, je croyais, j'avais peur — these all describe an enduring state, not a discrete event.
Je voulais te parler hier soir.
I wanted to talk to you last night.
Elle pensait que tu venais ce soir.
She thought you were coming tonight.
Avant, j'aimais le rap, maintenant je préfère le jazz.
Before, I used to like rap, now I prefer jazz.
Il avait peur des chiens depuis l'enfance.
He had been afraid of dogs since childhood.
The exception: when the mental state is presented as having a specific moment of onset (at that moment, suddenly, then), the passé composé is used. J'ai eu peur (I got scared, at that moment) vs j'avais peur (I was afraid, as a state). This shift is covered in the next section.
The four uses of the passé composé
A discrete completed event
The default case. Something happened, has a beginning and an end, and is being reported as such.
Hier, j'ai vu un film extraordinaire.
Yesterday I saw an extraordinary film.
Elle est arrivée à neuf heures pile.
She arrived at exactly nine o'clock.
J'ai fini mon travail et je suis rentré.
I finished my work and went home.
A bounded duration (with explicit endpoints)
When you report an action whose duration is closed by a time boundary (pendant, de…à, en, plus a number of hours/days), the verb is in the passé composé even though the action lasted a while. The boundedness, not the duration, is what matters.
J'ai vécu à Lyon pendant cinq ans.
I lived in Lyon for five years. (closed period — PC)
On a parlé deux heures.
We talked for two hours. (closed period — PC)
Il a plu toute la journée hier.
It rained all day yesterday. (closed period — PC)
Compare il pleuvait (it was raining — open, ongoing in some narrative moment) with il a plu toute la journée (it rained all day — closed, reported as a finished interval).
A change of state with a clear onset
When a verb describes the onset or transition into a state — suddenly understood, suddenly realized, got scared, became aware — French uses the passé composé even though English might use a simple past understood, realized.
Soudain, j'ai compris ce qu'il voulait dire.
Suddenly I understood what he meant. (PC — onset)
À ce moment-là, j'ai eu peur.
At that moment, I got scared. (PC — onset of fear)
J'ai su la vérité quand j'ai lu la lettre.
I learned the truth when I read the letter. (savoir in PC = found out)
This is one of the most important meaning-shifts in the system. The imparfait of savoir means knew (state); the passé composé of savoir means learned, found out (event). The imparfait of connaître means knew, was acquainted; the passé composé means met, made the acquaintance of. Imparfait reports the steady state; passé composé reports the moment of entry into it.
Quand je l'ai connu, il vivait à Berlin.
When I met him, he was living in Berlin. (connaître in PC = met)
Je le connaissais depuis l'enfance.
I'd known him since childhood. (connaître in impf = was acquainted)
A series of events that move a narrative forward
When you string together multiple events in chronological order, each new event is passé composé. This is the engine of past-tense narrative.
Je suis sorti, j'ai pris un taxi, je suis arrivé à l'aéroport, j'ai enregistré mes bagages.
I went out, took a taxi, arrived at the airport, checked my bags.
Each verb is a discrete movement of the timeline. None of them is descriptive or backgrounding.
The two tenses working together: how to write narrative
This is where the system pays off. A typical French narrative paragraph alternates between the two tenses to create depth.
Il pleuvait. Pierre est arrivé. Il était mouillé.
It was raining (impf, background). Pierre arrived (PC, event). He was wet (impf, resulting state).
Je dormais quand le téléphone a sonné.
I was sleeping when the phone rang. (impf — ongoing; PC — interruption)
Quand je l'ai vue, elle souriait.
When I saw her, she was smiling. (PC for the seeing, impf for the smile)
Le soleil se couchait quand on est arrivés à la plage. Il y avait peu de monde, l'air était doux. On a posé nos serviettes et on s'est baignés.
The sun was setting (impf) when we got to the beach (PC). There were few people (impf), the air was mild (impf). We put down our towels (PC) and went for a swim (PC).
The pattern: imparfait sets the scene (the canvas) — il pleuvait, le soleil se couchait, il y avait peu de monde. Passé composé delivers the events that move the story (the brush strokes) — Pierre est arrivé, on est arrivés, on a posé, on s'est baignés. A French story without the imparfait reads as a flat list of events; without the passé composé, nothing happens.
Why the same English verb sometimes maps to either
The most disorienting feature of the system, for English speakers, is that the same English past-tense form (I ate, he arrived, she lived) can correspond to either French tense depending on context. There is no fixed mapping from English to French; you have to decide on every verb.
Je mangeais quand tu as appelé.
I was eating when you called. (impf — ongoing)
J'ai mangé puis je suis sorti.
I ate then I went out. (PC — completed)
Pendant les vacances, je mangeais beaucoup.
On vacation, I used to eat a lot. (impf — habitual)
J'ai bien mangé hier soir.
I ate well last night. (PC — bounded by a specific evening)
The same verb manger in the same English form ate / was eating lands in different French tenses depending on whether the eating was ongoing, completed, habitual, or bounded.
Reliable heuristics
Use these tests when you're unsure which tense to use.
Test 1: time markers
Some adverbials reliably go with one tense.
With passé composé (specific point or bounded duration):
- hier, hier soir, ce matin, lundi dernier, l'année dernière
- à 5 heures, en 2019, ce jour-là
- soudain, tout à coup, brusquement
- pendant X heures, en X minutes, deux fois
With imparfait (open/repetitive):
- tous les jours, toujours, souvent, régulièrement, parfois
- à l'époque, dans ce temps-là, autrefois
- chaque fois, le lundi (every Monday), tous les étés
Hier soir, j'ai dîné chez Marie.
Last night I had dinner at Marie's. (hier soir + PC)
Tous les soirs, je dînais chez Marie.
Every night I used to have dinner at Marie's. (tous les soirs + impf)
Test 2: substitute was / used to in English
If the most natural English is was -ing or used to, it's imparfait. If the most natural English is the simple past, it's usually passé composé — though the simple past is ambiguous, so this test fails about 30% of the time and you have to combine it with Test 3.
Test 3: ask whether the action is closed in time
A closed action (begun and ended within the time frame you're describing) is passé composé. An open action (in progress, repeating, or holding as a state) is imparfait. The presence of pendant X, en X, combien de temps, deux fois signals closure.
Test 4: stative verbs default to imparfait
Verbs of state — être, avoir, savoir, connaître, vouloir, pouvoir, croire, penser, aimer, espérer — default to imparfait. They go in passé composé only when the speaker is specifically marking a moment of change.
Il était médecin.
He was a doctor. (impf — state)
Il a été médecin pendant 30 ans.
He was a doctor for 30 years. (PC — closed period)
J'avais 20 ans à l'époque.
I was 20 at the time. (impf — state)
J'ai eu 20 ans le mois dernier.
I turned 20 last month. (PC — change of state)
The trickiest cases
Je voulais vs j'ai voulu
Je voulais = I wanted (state — open desire). J'ai voulu = I tried (a specific attempt) or I decided (a discrete moment of will).
Je voulais te parler depuis longtemps.
I'd been wanting to talk to you for a while. (impf — state)
J'ai voulu lui parler, mais elle a refusé.
I tried to talk to her, but she refused. (PC — specific attempt)
Je pouvais vs j'ai pu
Je pouvais = I could (in general, had the ability). J'ai pu = I managed (succeeded on a specific occasion).
Quand j'étais jeune, je pouvais courir 10 km sans m'arrêter.
When I was young, I could run 10 km without stopping.
J'ai pu finir le marathon malgré la pluie.
I managed to finish the marathon despite the rain.
Je devais vs j'ai dû
Je devais = I was supposed to (planned obligation). J'ai dû = I had to (and did) or I must have (probability).
Je devais partir à six heures, mais je suis resté.
I was supposed to leave at six, but I stayed.
J'ai dû partir tôt à cause d'un imprévu.
I had to leave early because of an emergency.
Je savais vs j'ai su
Je savais = I knew (state). J'ai su = I learned, found out (moment of acquisition).
Je savais qu'il était malade.
I knew he was sick. (impf — state)
J'ai su qu'il était malade quand sa femme m'a appelé.
I found out he was sick when his wife called me. (PC — onset)
These four verbs (vouloir, pouvoir, devoir, savoir) plus connaître are the ones where the imparfait/passé composé split most dramatically changes meaning. Memorize the pairs.
The narrative paragraph drill
Take this passage and notice how the tenses interact:
Il était sept heures du matin. La rue était déserte. Une vieille femme marchait lentement vers la boulangerie. Soudain, un chien a aboyé derrière elle. Elle a sursauté, a laissé tomber son sac, et s'est retournée. Le chien était énorme. Il la regardait fixement. Elle a hésité un instant, puis a souri et lui a tendu la main.
It was seven in the morning (impf — setting). The street was deserted (impf — setting). An old woman was walking slowly toward the bakery (impf — ongoing). Suddenly a dog barked behind her (PC — event). She jumped (PC — event), dropped her bag (PC — event), and turned around (PC — event). The dog was huge (impf — description). It was staring fixedly at her (impf — ongoing). She hesitated a moment (PC — event), then smiled and held out her hand (PC, PC — events).
Every imparfait is description or ongoing background. Every passé composé is a discrete event. Strip the imparfaits and you'd have a stage-direction list with no atmosphere; strip the passé composés and nothing would happen. The two tenses are doing fundamentally different jobs.
Common Mistakes
❌ Quand j'étais petit, j'ai joué au foot tous les jours.
Incorrect — habitual past requires imparfait, not passé composé.
✅ Quand j'étais petit, je jouais au foot tous les jours.
When I was little, I used to play football every day.
❌ Hier, je mangeais une pizza et je rentrais.
Incorrect — these are completed events, not background; passé composé.
✅ Hier, j'ai mangé une pizza et je suis rentré.
Yesterday I ate a pizza and went home.
❌ Pierre dormait quand le téléphone sonnait.
Incorrect — the phone ringing is the new event interrupting Pierre's sleep; PC.
✅ Pierre dormait quand le téléphone a sonné.
Pierre was sleeping when the phone rang.
❌ Hier, il faisait beau et je suis allé à la plage et il y a eu beaucoup de monde.
Incorrect — describing the weather and the crowd uses imparfait; only the trip is an event.
✅ Hier, il faisait beau et je suis allé à la plage. Il y avait beaucoup de monde.
Yesterday it was nice and I went to the beach. There were a lot of people.
❌ J'ai connu Marie depuis dix ans.
Incorrect — j'ai connu means 'I met'; for the ongoing acquaintance, use je connais (present) or je connaissais (impf).
✅ Je connais Marie depuis dix ans.
I've known Marie for ten years.
Key Takeaways
The passé composé reports what happened — discrete completed events that move a narrative forward. The imparfait describes what was happening — ongoing situations, habits, descriptions, states of mind, the canvas onto which events are painted. Almost every past-tense paragraph in French uses both tenses together: the imparfait sets the scene, the passé composé delivers the action. When unsure which to pick, ask whether the action is closed or open in time, whether it advances the story or holds it still, and whether English would naturally use was -ing or used to (imparfait) versus a simple past event (passé composé). For the small set of stative verbs — vouloir, pouvoir, devoir, savoir, connaître — the choice between the two tenses is not stylistic but semantic: the same verb means different things in each tense, and learning the pairs is the single best return on study time at the B1 level.
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