Breakdown of Le chien disparu est rentré hier.
le chien
the dog
rentrer
to go home / to return
hier
yesterday
disparu
missing, disappeared
Questions & Answers about Le chien disparu est rentré hier.
Why does this sentence use est rentré instead of the journalistic conditional?
This lesson focuses on the conditional for unconfirmed rumors (like serait rentré for 'reportedly came back'). However, this specific sentence states a confirmed fact: the dog definitely came back. Therefore, it uses the standard past tense (passé composé).
Why is the auxiliary verb est instead of a?
Rentrer (to come back / go home) is a verb of motion that requires être as its helping verb in the passé composé, rather than the usual avoir. You might remember this from the 'Dr. Mrs. Vandertramp' list of verbs!
What is the difference between rentré, revenu, and retourné?
Rentrer means to return home or to your usual base, which is perfect for a family dog returning to its house. Revenir means to come back to where the speaker is right now, and retourner means to go back to a place where the speaker is not currently located.
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