In French, the conditional tense is used to express actions that would happen under certain conditions, polite requests, or to describe future events from a past perspective. There are two main conditional tenses: the present conditional and the past conditional.
- Present Conditional: Formed by adding the conditional endings (-ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient) to the future stem of the verb (usually the infinitive). Used for hypothetical situations and polite requests.
- Past Conditional: Formed with the conditional of the auxiliary verb (avoir or être) plus the past participle. Used to express actions that would have happened in the past under certain conditions.
Understanding the conditional tense is key for expressing nuance and politeness in French conversation.
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Table of Contents
- Present Conditional
The French present conditional is a verb tense used to express hypothetical situations, polite requests, or actions that depend on a condition. It is formed by taking the future stem of the verb and adding imperfect endings. For regular verbs, the future stem is the infinitive (or the infinitive minus the final "e" for -re verbs). Then, add the following endings: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient.
- Past Conditional
The past conditional (le conditionnel passé) in French expresses what would have happened if certain conditions had been met; it is formed using the conditional of avoir or être plus the past participle.
Last updated: Wed Jun 18, 2025
