Tenses Flashcards
Present indicative infinitive -er
E Es E Ons Ez Ent
To express an action in process, present indicative
Être en train de + infinitive form
Je suis en train de Parler à
I am talking to….
Depuis present indicative
To ask a question about duration of an action, use depuis quand (since when) or depuis combien de temps (how long).
Depuis quand travaillez-vous chez Starbucks
How long have you worked at Starbucks
Present indicative -ir
Choisir
- is
- is
- it
- issons
- issez
- issent
Present indicative usage
- general statements, describe on going action
- express close future
- a habitual action
- past action closely connected to the present
- historical fact
- to describe past events more dramatically
Present indicative irregular -ir
Sortir Sors Sors Sort Sortons Sortez Sortent
Present indicative -re
Vendre Vends Vends Vend Vendons Vendez Vendent
Present indicative irregular -re
Prendre Prends Prends Prend Prenons Prenez Prennent
The causation form
‘Something done by someone or of causing something to happen.’ Faire+verb
Ils envoient le document
(They send the document)
Ils font envoyer le document
(They have the document sent)
Imparfait
Describe a state of mind and being in the past as well as continuous, repeated, or habitual past action
Imparfait vs Passé composé (avec être, avoir, penser, croire, savoir, espérer, sembler, paraître)
These verbs tend to be used more with imparfait
however, when used with P.C. they take on a different meaning
I.E.
Il semblait déprimé (he looked depressed)
Il a semblé comprendre (he seemed to understand)
Imparfait with special constructions
depuis
the idea that an action had been going on for a period of time before being interrupted.
I.E.
Il randonnait depuis trois jours quand il a trouvé cette belle auberge
(he had been hiking for 3 days when he found this beautiful inn)
Imparfait with special constructions
Si+on
Si+on the imparfait is used to make a suggestion or to invite someone to do something. It is cong. in the third person.
IE
Si on allait en France cet été? (what about going to france this summer?)
Si on achetait des billets? (what about buying tickets?)
Imparfait with special constructions
Si seulement
To express a wish or a regret
Si seulement on pouvait prendre des vacance! (If only we could take a vacation!)
Si seulement vous saviez! (only if you knew!)
Imparfait with special constructions
Venir+de+infinitive
the immediate past can also be used in the imparfait to describe an action that had JUST HAPPENED
IE
Elle vient de téléphoner (she has just called)
Elle venait de téléphoner quand il est entré. (She had just called when he walked in)
Le futur simple
Translated into “I will….”
Can also be used as a command form
Can also be used as a way to express future ideas from the past. IE “would”
Examples of cong. décider je déciderai nous déciderons tu décideras vous déciderez Il décidera Ils décideront
Le futur simple
être and avoir
they are used to express probability in the present, to indicate something that is likely or allegedly true.
IE
Le prof. n’a pas demandé nos devoirs. Il sera distrait. (The prof. did not ask for our hw. He was probably distracted)
Le futur antérieur (future perfect)
describes an action that will take place and be completed before another future action.
Used futur simple of être et avoir
J’aurai écrit Je serai devenu
tu auras écrit Tu seras devenu
ect… ect..
Le futur antérieur vs Future Simple
Use futur simple if:
Its implied that both actions take place simultaneously.
Use Futur antérieur if:
*you want to mark an anterior action
ie
Elle vous téléphonera dès qu’elle aura fini son roman.
(She’ll call you as soon as she finishes {will have finished} her novel.)
*express probability of a past action
ie
Elle aura encore échoué à ses examens! (she probably failed her exams again!)
*used after si, implying a completed action. Si means whether.
ie
Je me demande si j’aurai tout réglé avant ce soir. (I am wondering whether I’ll have resolved everything by tonight.)
WARNING: never used after si implying a future condition. Use present tense
ie: S’il a le temps, il passera vous voir (If he has time, he’ll stop by to see you).
avoir Imparfait
j'avais tu avais il avait nous avions vous aviez ils avaient
