6.2.8
Avois & Être - Perfect Infinitive
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The Perfect Infinitive Using Avoir
The perfect infinitive translates as 'to have done something'. It's formed by using the infinitive of 'avoir' followed by a past participle. Only verbs that use 'avoir' in the perfect tense use 'avoir' here.

ER verbs
- Je regrette d'avoir oublié vos chaussures.
- I regret having forgotten your shoes.
- Après avoir déjeuné, je suis allé à Londres.
- After having eaten lunch, I went to London

IR verbs
- Ne le jetez pas avant d'avoir fini.
- Please don't throw it away until you have finished.
- Je regrette d'avoir vomi hier soir.
- I regret having thrown up last night.

RE verbs
- Je suis triste d'avoir perdu mon portable.
- I am sad to have lost my phone.
- Je regrette d'avoir vendu ma voiture.
- I regret having sold my car.
The perfect infinitive translates as 'to have done something'. It's formed by using the infinitive of 'être' followed by a past participle. Only verbs that use 'être' in the perfect tense use 'être' here.

ER verbs
- Après être allé à Paris, je n'avais pas envie de rentrer à Manchester.
- After having gone to Paris, I didn't want to go back to Manchester.
- Je regrette d'être monté dans ce bus.
- I regret having got on this bus.

IR verbs
- Après être sorti hier soir, je suis très fatigué aujourd'hui.
- After having gone out last night, I am very tired today.
- Je regrette d'être parti tôt hier.
- I regret having left early yesterday.

RE
- Après être descendu sous le pont, il n'est pas revenu.
- After having gone below deck, he hasn't come back.
- Après être descendu derrière les montagnes, l'avion a disparu.
- After having gone down behind the mountains, the plane disappeared.
1Everyday Activities
1.1Time Expressions
1.2Food & Drink
1.3The Human Body & Health
2Personal & Social Life
2.1Self, Family & Friends
2.2In the Home
2.4Clothes & Accessories
3The World Around Us
3.1People & Places
3.2Natural World, Environment, Climate & Weather
3.3Communications & Technology
3.4The Built Environment
3.5Measurements
3.6Materials
4The World of Work
4.1Education
5The International World
6Common Tenses
6.1Present Tense
6.2Perfect Tense
6.3Imperfect tense
6.4Imperfect vs Perfect
7Advanced Tenses
7.1Conditional Tense
8Extra Grammar
8.1Articles
8.2The Passive Voice
8.3Pronouns
8.4Asking Questions
8.5Nouns
8.7Adverbs
8.8Adjectives
8.9Negative
8.10Conjunctions
8.11Miscellaneous
Jump to other topics
1Everyday Activities
1.1Time Expressions
1.2Food & Drink
1.3The Human Body & Health
2Personal & Social Life
2.1Self, Family & Friends
2.2In the Home
2.4Clothes & Accessories
3The World Around Us
3.1People & Places
3.2Natural World, Environment, Climate & Weather
3.3Communications & Technology
3.4The Built Environment
3.5Measurements
3.6Materials
4The World of Work
4.1Education
5The International World
6Common Tenses
6.1Present Tense
6.2Perfect Tense
6.3Imperfect tense
6.4Imperfect vs Perfect
7Advanced Tenses
7.1Conditional Tense
8Extra Grammar
8.1Articles
8.2The Passive Voice
8.3Pronouns
8.4Asking Questions
8.5Nouns
8.7Adverbs
8.8Adjectives
8.9Negative
8.10Conjunctions
8.11Miscellaneous
Practice questions on Avois & Être - Perfect Infinitive
Can you answer these? Test yourself with free interactive practice on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.
- 1How do you say 'to have started' in French?Multiple choice
- 2
- 3Which of the following is NOT in the perfect infinitive?Multiple choice
- 4How do you say 'having fallen' in French?Multiple choice
- 5
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