Grammar / A2 : Elementary / The imperfect tense
The imperfect tense
Formation and uses: description, past habits.
The tense of background, description, and habit
The passé composé describes what happened: events that are complete, bounded, done. The imparfait describes everything around those events: what things were like, what was going on at the time, and what used to happen regularly. It is the tense of description, background, and repeated action in the past.
When you tell a story in French, the two tenses work together. The passé composé moves the story forward: it marks the events. The imparfait provides the setting: what the place was like, what people were doing, what the habits were. Understanding this division of labour is the central skill of A2-level French narrative.
1. Formation
The imparfait is the most regular tense in French. Its formation has only one truly irregular verb. The method is always the same: take the nous form of the present tense, remove -ons, and you have the imperfect stem. Then add the same set of endings regardless of verb group.
Step 1: Take the nous present form and remove -ons to get the stem.
Step 2: Add the imparfait endings: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient
| Verb | Nous present | Stem | je / tu / il | nous | vous | ils |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| parler | parlons | parl- | parlais / parlais / parlait | parlions | parliez | parlaient |
| finir | finissons | finiss- | finissais / finissais / finissait | finissions | finissiez | finissaient |
| prendre | prenons | pren- | prenais / prenais / prenait | prenions | preniez | prenaient |
| faire | faisons | fais- | faisais / faisais / faisait | faisions | faisiez | faisaient |
| venir | venons | ven- | venais / venais / venait | venions | veniez | venaient |
| voir | voyons | voy- | voyais / voyais / voyait | voyions | voyiez | voyaient |
| boire | buvons | buv- | buvais / buvais / buvait | buvions | buviez | buvaient |
💡 The pronunciation of the endings: je, tu, il and ils all have the same sound /ɛ/ (like the "e" in "bed"). Only nous (-ions, /jɔ̃/) and vous (-iez, /je/) sound different. This mirrors the -ER verb pattern in the present, where four forms also sound identical.
2. être : the only irregular stem
être is the only verb whose imparfait stem cannot be derived from the nous present tense. Its stem is ét-, coming from Latin. The endings are the same as for all other verbs.
| Subject | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| je | j'étais | J'étais fatigué. (I was tired.) |
| tu | tu étais | Tu étais où ? (Where were you?) |
| il / elle / on | il était | Il était midi. (It was noon.) |
| nous | nous étions | Nous étions en vacances. (We were on holiday.) |
| vous | vous étiez | Vous étiez présents ? (Were you there?) |
| ils / elles | ils étaient | Ils étaient contents. (They were happy.) |
💡 All other verbs that seem irregular in the present form their imparfait regularly from the nous stem. avoir (nous avons) → av- → j'avais. aller (nous allons) → all- → j'allais. savoir (nous savons) → sav- → je savais. The nous present stem is always the key.
3. Spelling adjustments
Verbs whose stems end in -c or -g require the same adjustments in the imparfait as they do in the present: to preserve the soft consonant sound before the endings that start with -a.
| Verb | je / tu / il / ils forms | nous / vous forms |
|---|---|---|
| commencer | je commençais (cedilla before -a) | nous commencions (no cedilla before -i) |
| manger | je mangeais (e before -a) | nous mangions (no extra e before -i) |
| voyager | je voyageais | nous voyagions |
4. The four uses of the imparfait
Use 1 : Description and background in the past
When you describe what a place looked like, what the weather was like, what someone looked like, or what a situation was like at a given moment in the past, you use the imparfait. These are the details that set the scene.
Il faisait beau et il y avait du soleil. (The weather was nice and it was sunny.)
La maison était grande et silencieuse. (The house was large and quiet.)
Elle portait un manteau rouge. (She was wearing a red coat.)
Il était tard et les rues étaient vides. (It was late and the streets were empty.)
Le restaurant se trouvait au coin de la rue. (The restaurant was on the corner of the street.)
Use 2 : Habitual and repeated actions in the past
When you describe something that used to happen regularly (a habit, a routine, a repeated action), use the imparfait. The English equivalent is often "used to" or "would" (in the habitual sense).
Quand j'étais enfant, je jouais au foot tous les mercredis. (When I was a child, I used to play football every Wednesday.)
Chaque été, nous allions en Bretagne. (Every summer, we went to Brittany.)
Le matin, il prenait un café avant de partir. (In the morning, he would have a coffee before leaving.)
Elle appelait sa mère tous les dimanches. (She used to call her mother every Sunday.)
Avant, je ne buvais pas de café. (Before, I didn't use to drink coffee.)
Use 3 : Ongoing action interrupted by a completed event
This is one of the most classic uses of the imparfait: describing what was in progress (imparfait) when a specific event happened (passé composé). The imparfait provides the ongoing background; the passé composé interrupts it.
Je dormais quand le téléphone a sonné. (I was sleeping when the phone rang.)
Elle lisait quand il est entré. (She was reading when he came in.)
Nous dînions quand la lumière s'est éteinte. (We were having dinner when the light went out.)
Il pleuvait quand nous sommes arrivés. (It was raining when we arrived.)
Je regardais la télé quand j'ai entendu un bruit. (I was watching TV when I heard a noise.)
Use 4 : States of mind, feelings, and mental processes in the past
Verbs that describe states rather than actions (thinking, knowing, believing, wanting, feeling) are almost always in the imparfait when used in a past context, because states are ongoing and not bounded events.
Je pensais que c'était facile. (I thought it was easy.)
Il voulait partir mais il ne pouvait pas. (He wanted to leave but he couldn't.)
Elle savait la réponse. (She knew the answer.)
Je croyais qu'il était français. (I thought he was French.)
Nous avions faim. (We were hungry.)
5. Time markers for the imparfait
Certain expressions signal that the imparfait is appropriate because they indicate repetition, habit, or ongoing state rather than a single completed event.
| Expression | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| quand j'étais enfant | when I was a child | Quand j'étais enfant, j'habitais à Taipei. |
| tous les jours / soirs | every day / evening | Il lisait tous les soirs. |
| chaque semaine / mois | every week / month | Chaque mardi, elle allait à la gym. |
| le lundi / le week-end | on Mondays / at weekends | Le week-end, ils faisaient du vélo. |
| souvent | often | On allait souvent au cinéma. |
| toujours | always | Elle arrivait toujours en avance. |
| d'habitude | usually, habitually | D'habitude, il prenait le bus. |
| en général | generally | En général, on mangeait à midi. |
| autrefois / avant | in the old days / before | Avant, il y avait un cinéma ici. |
| à cette époque | at that time | À cette époque, je travaillais à Lyon. |
6. Imparfait vs passé composé : side by side
This contrast is one of the central challenges of A2 French. The examples below show the same verbs used in both tenses: the meaning shifts entirely depending on which tense is chosen.
| Imparfait | Passé composé |
|---|---|
| Je mangeais une pomme. (I was eating an apple: ongoing action, no defined endpoint) | J'ai mangé une pomme. (I ate an apple: completed action) |
| Elle habitait à Paris. (She lived in Paris: ongoing state, no defined end) | Elle a habité à Paris pendant deux ans. (She lived in Paris for two years: defined duration, now over) |
| Il pleuvait. (It was raining: background description) | Il a plu toute la journée. (It rained all day: completed period) |
| Chaque été, nous allions en Espagne. (Every summer, we went to Spain: repeated habit) | L'été dernier, nous sommes allés en Espagne. (Last summer, we went to Spain: one specific trip) |
| Je savais la réponse. (I knew the answer: state of knowledge) | J'ai su la réponse. (I found out / I came to know the answer: change of state) |
A narrative that uses both tenses naturally:
Hier soir, je rentrais chez moi après une longue journée. Il faisait froid et les rues étaient presque vides. Soudain, j'ai entendu quelqu'un qui appelait mon nom. Je me suis retourné : c'était Marc, un ami que je n'avais pas vu depuis deux ans. Nous avons décidé d'aller boire un café.
Last evening, I was walking home after a long day. It was cold and the streets were almost empty. Suddenly, I heard someone calling my name. I turned around: it was Marc, a friend I hadn't seen in two years. We decided to go and have a coffee.
Imparfait: rentrais, faisait, étaient, avais vu (background/state); Passé composé: ai entendu, me suis retourné, avons décidé (events)
7. Key points
✓ Stem: take the nous present form, remove -ons → the imparfait stem
✓ Endings (always the same): -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient
✓ je / tu / il / ils all have the same sound /ɛ/ (only nous and vous sound different)
✓ être is the only truly irregular stem: j'étais, il était, nous étions
✓ Spelling: je commençais / je mangeais (same rules as present tense)
✓ Use 1: past descriptions and background; il faisait beau, la rue était calme
✓ Use 2: habits and repeated actions; tous les étés, nous allions...
✓ Use 3: ongoing action interrupted; je dormais quand il a appelé
✓ Use 4: past states of mind; je pensais, il voulait, elle savait
✓ Time markers: quand j'étais enfant, tous les jours, souvent, d'habitude, avant