Breakdown of Ils l'auraient acquitté si le témoin avait parlé.
ils
they (masculine/mixed)
avoir
to have
parler
to speak
le
him, it (masculine direct object pronoun)
si
if
le témoin
the witness
acquitter
to acquit
Questions & Answers about Ils l'auraient acquitté si le témoin avait parlé.
Why is the first verb auraient acquitté and the second verb avait parlé?
This sentence uses the third conditional to talk about a hypothetical past situation. It pairs the conditional past (auraient acquitté - would have acquitted) with si (if) plus the pluperfect (avait parlé - had spoken).
Can I flip the sentence and start with the si clause?
Yes! Just like in English, you can reverse the order: Si le témoin avait parlé, ils l'auraient acquitté. Just make sure the pluperfect tense (avait parlé) stays attached to si.
Why is the l' placed before auraient instead of before acquitté?
In compound tenses like the conditional past, object pronouns (like the l' meaning "him") must go directly in front of the conjugated helping verb (auraient), never in front of the past participle (acquitté).
If they had acquitted a woman instead of a man, would acquitté change?
Yes! Because the direct object pronoun (l') comes before the verb, the past participle has to agree with it. If l' stood for a woman, you would add an e to make it Ils l'auraient acquittée.
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