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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb agiter

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The English translation of the French verb agiter is “to shake” or “to stir.” It is pronounced “ah-zhee-tay.”

The language origin of agiter comes from the Latin word “agitare,” which means “to put in motion” or “to move vigorously.” It is often used in every day French in the Conditionnel Passé tense to express a hypothetical or future action in the past.

Three simple examples of its usage in this tense are:

  1. Si j’avais agité le mélange, il aurait pris une texture plus légère. (If I had shaken the mixture, it would have had a lighter texture.)
  2. Nous aurions gagné la compétition si tu avais agité les drapeaux plus fort. (We would have won the competition if you had waved the flags more vigorously.)
  3. Elle aurait pu se blesser si elle avait agité ses bras aussi brusquement. (She could have gotten hurt if she had waved her arms so abruptly.)

English translations:

  1. If I had shaken
  2. We would have won
  3. She could have gotten hurt

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais agité Si j’avais su, je t’aurais agité. I would have shaken you.
tu aurais agité Tu aurais agité plus tôt. You would have shaken earlier.
il aurait agité Il aurait agité le drapeau. He would have waved the flag.
elle aurait agité Elle aurait agité la bouteille. She would have shaken the bottle.
on aurait agité On aurait agité l’idée. One would have tossed around the idea.
nous aurions agité Nous aurions agité ensemble. We would have shaken together.
vous auriez agité Vous auriez agité les mains. You would have waved your hands.
ils auraient agité Ils auraient agité les drapeaux. They would have waved the flags.
elles auraient agité Elles auraient agité les maracas. They (female) would have shaken the maracas.

Other Conjugations for Agiter.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb agiter
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Agiter – 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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