Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Introduction to the verb alambiquer
The English translation of the French verb alambiquer is “to complicate/to make something complicated.” It is pronounced as ah-lahm-bee-kay.
The word alambiquer comes from the word “alambique,” which means “alembic” or “distilling apparatus.” The verb alambiquer can be traced back to the late 17th century and was originally used in the context of chemistry and alchemy, referring to the intricate process of distillation. Over time, it evolved to have a more general meaning of complicating or making something complex.
In everyday French, alambiquer is often used in the Plus-que-parfait tense to describe an action that was already complicated or made complex in the past. Here are three examples of its usage in this tense, with the respective English translations:
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J’avais alambiqué mon discours pour qu’il soit parfait, mais personne ne l’a vraiment compris. (I had complicated my speech to make it perfect, but no one really understood it.)
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Il avait alambiqué la recette en ajoutant des ingrédients inutiles, ce qui l’a rendue complètement ratée. (He had complicated the recipe by adding unnecessary ingredients, which made it a complete failure.)
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Nous avions alambiqué notre itinéraire pour visiter toutes les destinations touristiques en un seul jour, mais nous avons fini par nous perdre. (We had made our itinerary complicated to visit all the tourist destinations in one day, but we ended up getting lost.)
In all these examples, the verb alambiquer is used to indicate that the action of complicating or making something complex had already happened in the past.
Table of the Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of alambiquer
Pronoun | Conjugation | Short Example | English Translation |
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je | j’avais alambiqué | J’avais alambiqué le problème. | I had complicated the problem. |
tu | tu avais alambiqué | Tu avais alambiqué la solution. | You had complicated the solution. |
il | il avait alambiqué | Il avait alambiqué le mécanisme. | He had complicated the mechanism. |
elle | elle avait alambiqué | Elle avait alambiqué le discours. | She had complicated the speech. |
on | on avait alambiqué | On avait alambiqué le plan. | One had complicated the plan. |
nous | nous avions alambiqué | Nous avions alambiqué la recette. | We had complicated the recipe. |
vous | vous aviez alambiqué | Vous aviez alambiqué le débat. | You had complicated the debate. |
ils | ils avaient alambiqué | Ils avaient alambiqué le projet. | They had complicated the project. |
elles | elles avaient alambiqué | Elles avaient alambiqué la situation. | They had complicated the situation. |
Other Conjugations for Alambiquer.
Le Present (Present Tense) Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Passé Composé (Present Perfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Futur Simple (Simple Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Futur Proche (Near Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer (this article)
Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Futur Antérieur (Future Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Subjonctif Présent (Subjunctive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Subjonctif Imparfait (Subjunctive Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait (Subjunctive Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Conditionnel Présent (Conditional Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
L’impératif Présent (Imperative Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alambiquer
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Alambiquer – About the French Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) Tense
Tense Formation
Common everyday usage patterns
Sequencing of past events
Background information
Hypothetical or reported speech
Interactions with other tenses
Summary
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