To talk about what you would have done or what would have happened, French uses the conditionnel passé (past conditional). Use this tense to express regrets, reflect on missed opportunities, or imagine alternate destinies.
Forming the past conditional
The past conditional is a compound tense made of two parts:
- The auxiliary verb (avoir or être) conjugated in the conditional.
- The past participle of the main verb.
Most verbs use avoir.
| Pronoun | Avoir (Conditional) |
|---|---|
| je / j' | aurais |
| tu | aurais |
| il / elle / on | aurait |
| nous | aurions |
| vous | auriez |
| ils / elles | auraient |
| I would have seized the opportunity. | J'aurais saisi l'opportunité. |
| He would have chosen differently to have a lot of free time. | Il aurait choisi autrement pour avoir beaucoup de temps libre. |
| She would have pursued her career. | Elle aurait poursuivi sa carrière. |
Negation
To make a sentence negative, place ne (or n') and pas around the auxiliary verb.
| You wouldn't have chosen this path. | Tu n'aurais pas choisi ce parcours. |
Verbs that use "être"
Just as in the passé composé, verbs of motion, change of state, and all reflexive verbs use être.
| Pronoun | Être (Conditional) |
|---|---|
| je | serais |
| tu | serais |
| il / elle / on | serait |
| nous | serions |
| vous | seriez |
| ils / elles | seraient |
When using être, the past participle must agree in gender and number with the subject.
| I would have left to find another vocation. | Je serais parti pour trouver une autre vocation. |
Imagining alternate realities
You will often see the past conditional combined with phrases that set up a hypothetical scenario in the past.
| I would have dared to do it differently to change my life. | J'aurais osé le faire autrement pour changer de vie. |
| With another destiny, he would have changed paths and studied medicine. | Avec un autre destin, il aurait changé de parcours et étudié la médecine. |
Your questions are stored by us to improve Elon.io