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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb border

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The English translation of the French verb border is “to border” or “to line”. The infinitive form is pronounced “bohr-dehr”.

The language origin of border comes from the Old French word “bordure”, derived from the Latin word “borda” which means “edge” or “border”. It is most often used in everyday French in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which is the conditional past tense used to express a hypothetical or future action that would have happened in the past.

Here are three examples of the usage of border in the Conditionnel Passé tense with their respective English translations:

  1. Si tu avais fini tes devoirs plus tôt, tu aurais pu border tes vacances en Italie. (If you had finished your homework earlier, you could have spent your holidays in Italy.)

  2. Nous aurions pu border la rivière avec des pierres pour éviter les inondations. (We could have lined the river with stones to prevent floods.)

  3. Si elle avait gagné à la loterie, elle aurait pu border sa maison avec une clôture en or. (If she had won the lottery, she could have lined her house with a fence made of gold.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais bordé Si j’étais riche, je t’aurais bordé. If I were rich, I would have bordered you.
tu aurais bordé Tu aurais bordé plus tôt. You would have bordered earlier.
il aurait bordé Il aurait bordé la pièce. He would have bordered the room.
elle aurait bordé Elle aurait bordé ses rideaux. She would have bordered her curtains.
on aurait bordé On aurait bordé les murs. One would have bordered the walls.
nous aurions bordé Nous aurions bordé en bleu. We would have bordered in blue.
vous auriez bordé Vous auriez bordé avec du tissu. You would have bordered with fabric.
ils auraient bordé Ils auraient bordé leur jardin. They would have bordered their garden.
elles auraient bordé Elles auraient bordé la table. They (female) would have bordered the table.

Other Conjugations for Border.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb border
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Border – 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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