L imparfait the imperfect

1. L�imparfait � the imperfect

2. The Imperfect Tense The Imperfect Tense is used to describe: a state in the past, a repeated action in the past or how things used to be. Common trigger words for the Imperfect Tense are:- was, were, used to.

3. The Imperfect Tense In order to form the Imperfect Tense in French, you find the 1st person plural (nous) form of the Present Tense remove the - ons add on the endings:- je � ais nous � ions tu � ais vous � iez il � ait ils � aient

4. The Imperfect Tense - parler So for the verb parler, it would be nous parlons parl parlais etc.

5. parler � to speak French je parlais tu parlais il/elle parlait nous parlions vous parliez ils/elles parlaient English I was speaking, I used to speak you were speaking, you used to speak (s)he was speaking, he used to speak we were speaking, we used to speak you were speaking, you used to speak they were speaking, they used to speak

6. aller � to go French j�allais tu allais il/elle allait nous allions vous alliez ils/elles allaient English I was going, I used to go you were going, you used to go (s)he was going, he used to go we were going, we used to go you were going, you used to go they were going, they used to go

7. �tre - to be The only verb which is irregular in the Imperfect Tense is �tre, whose stem is �t... So the whole of the Imperfect Tense of �tre is:

8. �tre French j��tais tu �tais il/elle �tait nous �tions vous �tiez ils/elles �taient English I was, I used to be you were, you used to be (s)he was, he used to be we were, we used to be you were, you used to be they were, they used to be

9. � ger and � cer verbs Care must also be taken with verbs ending in -ger and -cer. In the 1st person plural of the present tense of these verbs, they are: nous mangeons and nous lan�ons.

10. � ger and � cer verbs This has implications for the Imperfect Tense. Whenever the ending of the Imperfect starts with an i, you either drop the e or drop the cedilla from the �

11. The Imperfect Tense of manger French je mangeais tu mangeais il/elle mangeait nous mangions vous mangiez ils/elles mangeaient English I was eating, I used to eat you were eating, you used to eat (s)he was eating, he used to eat we were eating, we used to eat you were eating, you used to eat they were eating, they used to eat

12. The Imperfect Tense of lancer French je lan�ais tu lan�ais il/elle lan�ait nous lancions vous lanciez ils/elles lan�aient English I was throwing, I used to throw you were throwing, you used to throw (s)he was throwing, he used to throw we were throwing, we used to throw you were throwing, you used to throw they were throwing, they used to throw