Log inSign up

S'il avait étudié, il travaillerait en tant que formateur.

S'il avait étudié, il travaillerait en tant que formateur.
If he had studied, he would work as a trainer.
From Lesson 355:Professional roles (en tant que)·French

Questions & Answers about S'il avait étudié, il travaillerait en tant que formateur.

Why is there no word for 'a' (like un) before formateur?
Just like when stating someone's profession with the verb être (e.g., Il est formateur), you do not use an article after en tant que when expressing a professional role. So, 'as a trainer' translates to en tant que formateur, without the un.
Could I use comme instead of en tant que here?
Yes, il travaillerait comme formateur is grammatically correct and means the same thing. However, en tant que is slightly more formal and places a stronger emphasis on his official capacity or title. Note that comme also drops the article before professions.
The sentence mixes the past perfect (avait étudié) with the present conditional (travaillerait). Is this a mistake?
No, this is a 'mixed conditional' sentence. It shows how a hypothetical past event (if he had studied back then) affects a present situation (he would be working right now). If both halves were in the past, it would mean 'he would have worked as a trainer' (il aurait travaillé) entirely in the past.
Does formateur also mean a sports trainer or coach?
No, a formateur is an instructor or corporate trainer who teaches skills or leads workshops in a professional setting. If you wanted to talk about a sports coach or athletic trainer, you would use entraîneur.

Learn S'il avait étudié, il travaillerait en tant que formateur and more in French

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free
Start learning French →