French Grammar: The Past Conditional

… Identify: French Grammar: The Past Conditional la grammaire française: le conditionnel passé Study: The Past Conditional (le conditionnel passé) is also known as the Conditional Perfect. It is a Perfect tense.  Perfect tenses are also known as compound tenses. They use a conjugated auxiliary verb (either AVOIR or ÊTRE) combined with the past participle of the main verb. The Past Conditional is […]

French Grammar: The Past Perfect (Pluperfect)

… Identify: French Grammar: The Past Perfect (Pluperfect) la grammaire française: le plus-que-parfait Study: Perfect tenses are also known as compound tenses. They use a conjugated auxiliary verb (either AVOIR or ÊTRE) combined with the past participle of the main verb. The Past Perfect – also called the Pluperfect (le plus-que-parfait) – is f0rmed with the imperative tense (l’imparfait) form of the […]

French Grammar : Passé Composé vs. Imperfect Tense

… Identify: French Grammar: Passé Composé vs. Imperfect Tense la grammaire française: le passé composé versus l’imparfait Hier, nous dînions quand Jean a téléphoné. Yesterday we were having dinner when Jean phoned. Je me suis levé, je me suis habillé, et j’ai pris le petit déjeuner. I got up, got dressed and ate breakfast. Ils […]

French Grammar: The Imperfect Tense – Regular and Irregular Verbs

… Identify: French Grammar: The Imperfect Tense – Regular and Irregular Verbs la grammaire française: l’imparfait des verbes réguliers et irréguliers When speaking about the past in English, you choose which past tense to use depending on the context and the meaning you wish to convey. In French sentences, you choose which past tense you use depending on the meaning you […]

French Grammar: The Imperfect Tense – Basics

… Identify: French Grammar: The Imperfect Tense – Basics la grammaire française: l’imparfait When speaking about the past in English, you choose which past tense to use depending on the context and the meaning you wish to convey. In French sentences, you choose which past tense you use depending on the meaning you wish to convey. Study: When speaking about the […]

French Grammar: Passé Composé with Reflexive Verbs

… Identify: French Grammar: Passé Composé with Reflexive Verbs la grammaire française: les verbes réfléchis au Passé Composé Reflexive verbs are used when the subject and object of a verb (action) are the same. The action “reflects back” onto the subject! Study: Reflexive verbs are used when the subject and object of a verb (action) […]

French Grammar: The Past Participle

… Identify: French Grammar: The Past Participle la grammaire française: le participe passé Study: The past participle is the general equivalent of using [-ED] in English. It can be used in a variety of functions including compound tenses and as adjectives with the verb ‘ÊTRE’. To form the past participle for regular verbs, you’ll need to add a new ending to […]

French Grammar: The Recent Past with [VENIR DE] + Infinitive

… Identify: French Grammar: The Recent Past with [VENIR DE] + Infinitive la grammaire française: le passé récent avec [venir de] + l’infinitif VENIR is an irregular verb that normally means “to come”.  However, VENIR is also a very handy verb when we want to talk about actions that have (or had) taken place in […]

French Vocabulary: Expressions of Time – Past

… Identify: French Vocabulary: Expressions of Time – Past le vocabulaire français : des expressions de temps – du passé Terms that convey timeframes. Specify when actions have already happened, either recently or in the distant past. Study: Learning to use expressions of past time will help you specify when you have done something and […]

Spanish Grammar: Past Subjunctive – [IF] Clauses

… Identify Spanish Grammar: Past Subjunctive with [IF] Clauses la gramática española: el subjuntivo pasado (imperfecto) – las cláusulas [si] The subjunctive is a verb mood, not a tense in terms of time. Utilized in special clauses with [SI]. … Connect LEAF Spanish Grammar: The Subjunctive – Basics LEAF Spanish Grammar: The Past (Imperfect) Subjunctive […]