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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb accidenter

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The English translation of the French verb accidenter is “to have an accident.” The infinitive form of accidenter is pronounced “ahk-see-dahn-teh.”

The word accidenter comes from the French noun “accident,” which ultimately derives from the Latin word “accidere,” meaning “to happen.” In everyday French, accidenter is most often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses a past conditional action or event. This tense is formed by using the auxiliary verb “avoir” in the conditional tense followed by the past participle of the verb.

Here are three examples of accidenter in the Conditionnel Passé tense with their English translations:

  1. Si je n’avais pas été distrait, je n’aurais pas accidenté ma voiture. (If I hadn’t been distracted, I wouldn’t have had an accident with my car.)

  2. Vous auriez dû conduire plus prudemment pour éviter d’accidenter le piéton. (You should have driven more carefully to avoid hitting the pedestrian.)

  3. Ils auraient été en retard à leur rendez-vous s’ils n’avaient pas été accidentés sur l’autoroute. (They would have been late for their appointment if they hadn’t been in an accident on the highway.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais accidenté Si j’avais su, je l’aurais accidenté. I would have caused an accident if I had known.
tu aurais accidenté Tu aurais accidenté la voiture. You would have damaged the car.
il aurait accidenté Il aurait accidenté son vélo. He would have had an accident with his bike.
elle aurait accidenté Elle aurait accidenté sa cheville. She would have hurt her ankle.
on aurait accidenté On aurait accidenté la voiture de location. One would have damaged the rental car.
nous aurions accidenté Nous aurions accidenté la clôture. We would have damaged the fence.
vous auriez accidenté Vous auriez accidenté votre télévision. You would have broken your television.
ils auraient accidenté Ils auraient accidenté leur bateau. They would have damaged their boat.
elles auraient accidenté Elles auraient accidenté leur voiture. They (female) would have damaged their car.

Other Conjugations for Accidenter.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb accidenter
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Accidenter – 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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