Le Passé Composé

Understanding the “Passé Composé” Tense

The passé composé is a past tense used to express a completed action, a specific event, or a series of actions in the past.

Formation

The passé composé is formed with two elements:

1. The auxiliary verb (avoir or être) conjugated in the present
2. The past participle of the main verb

The general structure is:

subject + auxiliary (avoir/être) + past participle

1. The auxiliary “avoir”

In most cases, avoir is used as the auxiliary.
Examples:
- J’ai mangé. (I ate.) - Tu as fini. (You finished.) - Nous avons pris. (We took.)

2. The auxiliary “être”

Être is used as the auxiliary with: - 16 verbs of movement or change of state (often called “la maison d’être”), for example: aller (to go), venir (to come), arriver (to arrive), partir (to leave), entrer (to enter), sortir (to go out), monter (to go up), descendre (to go down), naître (to be born), mourir (to die), rester (to stay), retourner (to return), tomber (to fall), passer (to pass), revenir (to come back), devenir (to become), rentrer (to come back in). - All reflexive verbs (se laver, s’habiller, se lever, etc.), that is, when the action is done to oneself.

Examples:
- Elle est allée au marché. (She went to the market.) - Nous sommes partis tôt. (We left early.) - Je me suis levé(e) à 7h. (I got up at 7am.)

Note: With the auxiliary “être”, the past participle agrees in gender and number with the subject.

---

Exercises

1. Complete with the correct auxiliary (avoir or être) and the past participle:

1. Je ________ (manger) une pomme.
2. Elle ________ (aller) à l’école.
3. Nous ________ (finir) nos devoirs.
4. Ils ________ (venir) en retard.
5. Tu ________ (se lever) tôt.

2. Put the following sentences in the passé composé:

1. Je (prendre) le bus.
2. Nous (arriver) à Paris.
3. Elle (se laver).
4. Vous (faire) vos devoirs.
5. Ils (tomber) dans la rue.

---

To consolidate your knowledge

Write a short paragraph (3-5 sentences) explaining how and when to use the passé composé and imparatif in French. Use your own words and, if possible, give an example.

Note

Share your sentences here:

• Futur Simple:
  1.
  2.
  3.

• Imperatif:
  1.
  2.
  3.