Question 1

Since the current lesson is about auxiliary verbs, how would I use 'remonter' in the passé composé to say 'I traced this story back to my grandfather'?

Accepted Answer

You would use avoir. When you actively trace something back, remonter takes a direct object (cette histoire), making it transitive. You would say: J'ai remonté cette histoire jusqu'à mon grand-père. When it is used intransitively to mean physical movement (like going back upstairs), it takes être.

Question 2

If 'remonter' takes 'être' when it lacks a direct object, would I say 'Cette histoire est remontée à mon grand-père' to say it dated back to him in the past?

Accepted Answer

Actually, no. When remonter à means 'to date back to,' it describes an ongoing state or a fact rather than a completed action. Because of this, you will almost always see it in the present tense (remonte) or the imperfect tense (remontait), rather than the passé composé.

Question 3

Why use 'à mon grand-père' instead of 'jusqu'à mon grand-père'?

Accepted Answer

Both are completely correct, but they carry slightly different nuances. Remonte à simply states the origin ('goes back to'). Adding jusqu'à ('all the way back to') would emphasize the long distance in time or the effort required to trace the story.

Question 4

Could 'Cette histoire' also be translated as 'This history' here?

Accepted Answer

Yes! The French word histoire translates to both 'story' and 'history'. Depending on the context, this sentence could perfectly well mean 'This history goes back to my grandfather,' for example if someone is discussing their family tree or historical roots.

Cette histoire remonte à mon grand-père.

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