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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb bailler

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The English translation of the French verb bailler is “to yawn.” It is pronounced as “bai-yay.”

The word bailler comes from the Old French verb “bailier,” meaning “to gape” or “to open wide.” It is most often used in everyday French conversation as a reflexive verb, “se bailler,” meaning “to yawn.” It can also be used in its non-reflexive form to mean “to open wide” or “to gape.”

In the Conditionnel Passé tense, bailler is conjugated as “j’aurais baille” for the first person singular, “tu aurais baille” for the second person singular, “il/elle aurait baille” for the third person singular, “nous aurions baille” for the first person plural, “vous auriez baille” for the second person plural, and “ils/elles auraient baille” for the third person plural.

1) Si j’avais été fatigué, je me serais baille. (If I had been tired, I would have yawned.)
2) Tu aurais baille si tu avais vu à quel point c’était ennuyeux. (You would have yawned if you had seen how boring it was.)
3) Il aurait baille toute la journée s’il avait dormi plus tôt. (He would have yawned all day if he had gone to bed earlier.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais bâillé Si je n’étais pas fatigué, j’aurais bâillé. If I wasn’t tired, I would have yawned.
tu aurais bâillé Tu aurais bâillé devant le professeur. You would have yawned in front of the teacher.
il aurait bâillé Il aurait bâillé pendant la réunion. He would have yawned during the meeting.
elle aurait bâillé Elle aurait bâillé sans arrêt. She would have yawned nonstop.
on aurait bâillé On aurait bâillé tout le temps. One would have yawned all the time.
nous aurions bâillé Nous aurions bâillé en public. We would have yawned in public.
vous auriez bâillé Vous auriez bâillé en plein milieu de la réunion. You would have yawned right in the middle of the meeting.
ils auraient bâillé Ils auraient bâillé s’ils avaient su que la réunion durerait si longtemps. They would have yawned if they had known the meeting would last so long.
elles auraient bâillé Elles auraient bâillé si elles avaient su qu’on parlerait des finances. They (female) would have yawned if they had known we would talk about finances.

Other Conjugations for Bailler.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb bailler
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Bailler – 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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