Être IR & RE
French: Edexcel IGCSE, topic 7.2.4
Regular IR Verbs
In French the same verbs that use 'être' in the perfect tense, also use it in the pluperfect tense. Here are the IR verbs that have regular past participle:
Sortir - to go out
- J'étais sorti(e) - I had gone out.
- Tu étais sorti(e) - you (singular) had gone out.
- Il/elle/on était sorti(e) - he/she/one had gone out.
- Nous étions sorti(e)s - we had gone out.
- Vous étiez sorti(e)(s) - you (plural/formal) had gone out.
- Ils/elles étaient sorti(e)s - they had gone out.
Partir - to leave
- J'étais parti(e) - I had left.
- Tu étais parti(e) - you (singular) had left.
- Il/elle/on était parti(e) - he/she/one had left.
- Nous étions parti(e)s - we had left.
- Vous étiez parti(e)(s) - you (plural/formal) had left.
- Ils/elles étaient parti(e)s - they had left.
Regular RE Verbs
In French, the verbs that use 'être' in the perfect tense also use 'être' in the pluperfect tense. Here is the RE verb 'descendre' (to go down) that has a regular past participle:
J'étais descendu(e) - I had gone down
Tu étais descendu(e) - you had gone down
- 'Tu' means 'you' (singular).
Il/elle/on était descendu(e) - he/she/one had gone down
Nous étions descendu(e)s - we had gone down
Vous étiez descendu(e)(s) - you had gone down
- 'Vous' means:
- You (plural).
- You (singular, formal).
Ils/elles étaient descendu(e)s - they had gone down
Test yourself on Être IR & RE
How do you say 'we had left' in French?
Which of these is NOT the correct form of the pluperfect tense?
How do you say 'they had gone down' in French?
Which of these is NOT the correct form of the pluperfect tense?