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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb baisser

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The English translation of the French verb baisser is “to lower” or “to decrease.” It is pronounced as “beh-say” in its infinitive form.

The word baisser comes from the Old French word “baissier,” which means “to lower” or “to diminish.” It is also related to the Latin word “bassiare,” which means “to kiss the hand in respect.” In everyday French, baisser is most often used to talk about lowering or decreasing something, such as a price, volume, or level.

In the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses a hypothetical or uncertain action in the past, baisser is conjugated as “aurais baissé” for the first person singular, “aurais baissé” for the second person singular, “aurait baissé” for the third person singular, and so on.

Here are three examples of how baisser is used in the Conditionnel Passé tense:

  1. Si j’avais suivi tes conseils, j’aurais baissé le prix de mes produits. (If I had followed your advice, I would have lowered the price of my products.)

  2. Tu aurais baissé le son de la musique si tu avais su qu’il y avait des bébés dans la pièce. (You would have turned down the volume of the music if you had known there were babies in the room.)

  3. Il aurait baissé les yeux s’il avait croisé le regard de son ex. (He would have lowered his eyes if he had made eye contact with his ex.)

In these examples, we can see that baisser is used to talk about lowering the price, volume, and eyes in different situations. In the Conditionnel Passé tense, it is used to express actions that could have happened in the past if certain conditions were met.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais baissé Si j’avais su, je l’aurais baissé. I would have lowered it.
tu aurais baissé Tu aurais baissé le volume. You would have lowered the volume.
il aurait baissé Il aurait baissé la tête. He would have lowered his head.
elle aurait baissé Elle aurait baissé les prix. She would have lowered the prices.
on aurait baissé On aurait baissé la musique. One would have lowered the music.
nous aurions baissé Nous aurions baissé la bannière. We would have lowered the banner.
vous auriez baissé Vous auriez baissé la fenêtre. You would have lowered the window.
ils auraient baissé Ils auraient baissé les armes. They would have lowered their weapons.
elles auraient baissé Elles auraient baissé les voix. They (female) would have lowered their voices.

Other Conjugations for Baisser.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb baisser
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Baisser – 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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