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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb avorter

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The English translation of the French verb avorter is “to abort.” The infinitive form is pronounced “ah-vor-tay.”

Avorter comes from the Late Latin word “abortare,” meaning “to miscarry,” which is derived from the Latin word “aborsus,” meaning “premature.” It is most often used in everyday French to refer to the act of terminating a pregnancy.

In the Conditionnel Passé tense, avorter is used to express an action that would have been completed in the past if certain conditions had been met. Here are three examples of its usage in this tense with their English translations:

  1. Si j’avais su que j’étais enceinte, j’aurais avorté. (If I had known I was pregnant, I would have aborted.)
  2. Nous aurions avorté si le bébé avait eu une malformation grave. (We would have aborted if the baby had a serious deformity.)
  3. Elle m’a dit qu’elle aurait avorté si elle n’avait pas été en mesure de subvenir aux besoins de l’enfant. (She told me she would have aborted if she had not been able to provide for the child’s needs.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais avorté Si j’avais su, j’aurais avorté. I would have aborted if I had known.
tu aurais avorté Tu aurais avorté plus tôt. You would have aborted earlier.
il aurait avorté Il aurait avorté sa mission. He would have aborted his mission.
elle aurait avorté Elle aurait avorté son bébé. She would have aborted her baby.
on aurait avorté On aurait avorté la mission. One would have aborted the mission.
nous aurions avorté Nous aurions avorté ensemble. We would have aborted together.
vous auriez avorté Vous auriez avorté à temps. You would have aborted on time.
ils auraient avorté Ils auraient avorté les plans. They would have aborted the plans.
elles auraient avorté Elles auraient avorté leur bébé. They (female) would have aborted their baby.

Other Conjugations for Avorter.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb avorter
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Avorter – 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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