Passé Composé vs Imparfait
Use the passé composé for finished events that move a story forward, and the imparfait for background, descriptions and past habits. Ask yourself: what happened? (passé composé) or what was it like, what was going on? (imparfait). Most past stories need both, often in the same sentence.
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In the TEF / TCF Canada exam
TEF Canada writing Section A asks you to continue a news story: events in passé composé, background in imparfait.
Passé Composé vs Imparfait: the full chart as text
Side by side
| Passé composé | Imparfait | |
|---|---|---|
| Role | The event: what happened | The scene: what it was like |
| Question | And then what happened? | What was going on? What was it like? |
| Time | Finished, with a clear limit | Ongoing, with no clear limit |
| Typical uses | Single actions, a series of actions, sudden changes | Descriptions, feelings, age, weather, time, habits |
| Formation | avoir/être (present) + past participle | nous stem + -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient |
| parler | j'ai parlé, nous avons parlé | je parlais, nous parlions |
| aller | je suis allé(e), nous sommes allé(e)s | j'allais, nous allions |
| Example | Samedi, j'ai passé le TCF. | Il faisait beau et j'étais stressé. |
Signal words: passé composé
- hier, samedi dernieryesterday, last Saturday
- soudain, tout à coupsuddenly, all of a sudden
- une fois, deux foisonce, twice
- pendant trois ansfor three years (and it ended)
- d'abord, ensuite, enfinfirst, then, finally
- en 2019, ce matin-làin 2019, that morning
Signal words: imparfait
- autrefois, à cette époquein the past, at that time
- d'habitude, souventusually, often
- tous les jours, le lundievery day, on Mondays
- quand j'étais petit(e)when I was little
- pendant quewhile
- toujours, parfoisalways, sometimes
The interrupted action
The long action in progress takes the imparfait. The short action that interrupts it takes the passé composé.
- Je dormais quand le téléphone a sonné.I was sleeping when the phone rang.
- Nous attendions le bus quand Paul est arrivé.We were waiting for the bus when Paul arrived.
Same verb, different meaning
| Verb | Imparfait | Passé composé |
|---|---|---|
| savoir | je savais: knew | j'ai su: found out |
| connaître | connaissais: knew | j'ai connu: met |
| pouvoir | je pouvais: could | j'ai pu: managed |
With these verbs, the tense changes the English verb, not just the time.
Go deeper
Free PDF · 23 pagesFrench Verb Conjugation Tables: the 40 most useful verbsHow conjugation works, the three regular patterns, and compact tables for 40 high-frequency verbs in six tenses Guide · 9 min readTEF Canada writing and speaking: Sections A and B explained200 words in 35 minutes, then 10 minutes to change a mindPreparing for TEF or TCF Canada?
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Questions
Ask what the verb does in the story. If it reports an event that happened and finished, use the passé composé: il a appelé. If it describes the situation, a feeling, the weather or a habit, use the imparfait: il était tard, il pleuvait.
Pendant + a duration usually takes the passé composé, because the period is closed: j'ai habité à Montréal pendant cinq ans. Pendant que (while) is different: it introduces a background action and takes the imparfait: pendant que je cuisinais.
Yes. Repeated past habits take the imparfait, often with d'habitude, souvent or tous les jours: le samedi, nous allions au marché. It translates as used to or would in English.
