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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb carotter

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The English translation of carotter is to swindle or cheat. The infinitive form is pronounced “kah-roh-tey”.

The word carotter comes from the French word “carotte”, meaning carrot, and is believed to originate from the phrase “tourner en carotte” which translates to “turning into a carrot”. This phrase was used to describe the act of deceiving someone or taking advantage of them.

In everyday French, carotter is most commonly used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which is the conditional perfect tense. This tense is used to express a hypothetical or unreal action in the past.

Here are three simple examples of its usage in this tense:

  1. Si je t’avais fait confiance, tu ne m’aurais pas carotté. (If I had trusted you, you wouldn’t have cheated me.)

  2. Elle aurait été plus prudente si elle avait su que son ami était un carotteur. (She would have been more careful if she had known that her friend was a swindler.)

  3. Nous aurions pu économiser de l’argent si le vendeur ne nous avait pas carottés. (We could have saved money if the salesman hadn’t swindled us.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais carotté J’aurais carotté ta part. I would have swindled your share.
tu aurais carotté Tu aurais carotté un autre magasin. You would have tricked another store.
il aurait carotté Il aurait carotté de l’argent. He would have embezzled money.
elle aurait carotté Elle aurait carotté un bijou. She would have stolen a jewel.
on aurait carotté On aurait carotté le système. One would have scammed the system.
nous aurions carotté Nous aurions carotté nos amis. We would have swindled our friends.
vous auriez carotté Vous auriez carotté le contrat. You would have cheated the contract.
ils auraient carotté Ils auraient carotté leurs clients. They would have defrauded their clients.
elles auraient carotté Elles auraient carotté l’héritage. They (female) would have cheated the inheritance.

Other Conjugations for Carotter.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb carotter
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Carotter – 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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