Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb abréger

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The English translation of the French verb abréger is “to shorten” or “to abbreviate.” The infinitive form of abréger is pronounced ah-breh-zhay.

The term abréger comes from the Latin verb abbreviare, which means “to make brief.” It is most often used in everyday French in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses a hypothetical or unreal action in the past.

Three simple examples of abréger in the Conditionnel Passé tense are:

  1. J’aurais abrégé mon discours si j’avais su que tu étais pressé. (I would have shortened my speech if I had known you were in a hurry.)

  2. Il aurait abrégé son séjour en France s’il n’avait pas eu de problèmes de santé. (He would have cut short his stay in France if he hadn’t had health problems.)

  3. Nous aurions abrégé nos vacances si le temps avait été mauvais. (We would have abbreviated our vacation if the weather had been bad.)

Table of the Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of abréger

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais abrégé Si j’avais su, je t’aurais abrégé. I would have shortened it for you.
tu aurais abrégé Tu aurais abrégé le discours. You would have shortened the speech.
il aurait abrégé Il aurait abrégé le livre. He would have shortened the book.
elle aurait abrégé Elle aurait abrégé son voyage. She would have shortened her trip.
on aurait abrégé On aurait abrégé la réunion. One would have shortened the meeting.
nous aurions abrégé Nous aurions abrégé la route. We would have shortened the journey.
vous auriez abrégé Vous auriez abrégé la liste. You would have shortened the list.
ils auraient abrégé Ils auraient abrégé les articles. They would have shortened the articles.
elles auraient abrégé Elles auraient abrégé leurs études. They (female) would have shortened their studies.

Other Conjugations for Abréger.

    

    Le Present (Present Tense) Conjugation of the French Verb abréger
     

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger
     

    Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger
     

    Passé Composé (Present Perfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger
     

    Futur Simple (Simple Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger
     

    Futur Proche (Near Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger
     

    Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger
     

    Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger

    Futur Antérieur (Future Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger

    Subjonctif Présent (Subjunctive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger

    Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger
     

    Subjonctif Imparfait (Subjunctive Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger

    Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait (Subjunctive Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger
     

    Conditionnel Présent (Conditional Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger
     

    Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger  (this article)

    L’impératif Présent (Imperative Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger

    L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb abréger


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Abréger – About the French Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense

The French “Conditionnel Passé” is a compound tense used to express hypothetical or unreal actions in the past. It is formed by combining the conditional of the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être” and the past participle of the main verb.

NOTE: To take a deep dive into all the French tenses then see my article on Mastering French Tense Conjugation.

Formation

Start with the conditional of the auxiliary verb: For most verbs, use “aurais” (for “avoir”) or “serais” (for “être”) as the conditional form. 

With “avoir”: j’aurais, tu aurais, il/elle/on aurait, nous aurions, vous auriez, ils/elles auraient. 
With “être”: je serais, tu serais, il/elle/on serait, nous serions, vous seriez, ils/elles seraient. 

Add the past participle of the main verb to this conditional form. 
For example, if you want to say “I would have done,” you would use “j’aurais fait.” If you want to say “She would have gone,” you would use “elle serait allée.”

Common Everyday Usage Patterns

Expressing Unreal Past Scenarios

The Conditionnel Passé is often used to talk about actions that did not happen in the past, but you are speculating about what would have occurred if they had. It’s a way to discuss hypothetical situations in the past. 

Si j’avais su, je t’aurais aidé. (If I had known, I would have helped you.)
Il serait venu s’il avait eu le temps. (He would have come if he had had the time.) 

Polite Requests or Suggestions

It can be used to make polite requests or suggestions in the past. 

Pourriez-vous m’aider, s’il vous plaît ? (Could you have helped me, please?) 

Expressing Doubt or Uncertainty

It can convey doubt or uncertainty regarding past events.

Il aurait peut-être oublié notre rendez-vous. (He might have forgotten our appointment.)

Interactions with Other Tenses

Conditional Present

You can use the Conditionnel Passé in combination with the conditional present to describe past actions that were hypothetical at the time they were spoken about. J’aurais aimé que tu m’appelles hier. (I would have liked you to call me yesterday.) 

Indicative Past Tenses

You might use the Conditionnel Passé alongside indicative past tenses like the passé composé to contrast hypothetical and real past events. Il est venu hier, mais s’il avait pu, il serait venu la semaine dernière. (He came yesterday, but if he could have, he would have come last week.) 

Conditional Future

In some cases, you can use the Conditionnel Passé in combination with the conditional future to discuss unreal past events that could have consequences in the future. Si j’avais réussi mon examen, j’aurais un meilleur travail. (If I had passed my exam, I would have a better job.)

Summary

In summary, the Conditionnel Passé is used to express hypothetical or unreal actions in the past. It is often used in conjunction with other tenses to convey various nuances in French, allowing speakers to discuss imaginary past scenarios, make polite requests, or express doubt about past events.

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