Verb tensesB1 · Intermediate
Imparfait vs passé composé
Both are past tenses, but they do different jobs. The imparfait describes the background: ongoing situations, habits, descriptions, and states ("used to / was doing"). The passé composé reports completed, punctual events that move the story forward ("did / happened").\n\nFormation of the imparfait: take the nous form of the present, drop -ons, add -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient.\n\nJe regardais la télé (background) quand le téléphone a sonné (event).
Examples
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Quand j'étais petit, je jouais au foot. | When I was little, I used to play football. |
| Il pleuvait, alors nous sommes restés. | It was raining, so we stayed. |
| Elle lisait quand je suis arrivé. | She was reading when I arrived. |
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