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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb colorier

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The English translation of the French verb colorier is “to color”. It is pronounced as “kaw-luh-ryey”.

Colorier comes from the Latin word “colorare”, meaning “to color or paint”. It is a regular -er verb and is most often used in its infinitive form in everyday French.

In the Conditionnel Passé tense, colorier is used to express actions that would have been completed in the past if certain conditions had been met. It is often translated into English as “would have colored”.

Examples:

  1. Si j’avais eu des crayons, j’aurais colorié le dessin. (If I had had some crayons, I would have colored the drawing.)
  2. Vous auriez colorié les murs si je vous avais laissé faire. (You would have painted the walls if I had let you.)
  3. Ils auraient colorié la maison entière en bleu s’ils en avaient eu l’occasion. (They would have painted the whole house blue if they had had the chance.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais colorié Si j’avais su, je t’aurais colorié. I would have colored for you.
tu aurais colorié Tu aurais colorié plus tôt. You would have colored earlier.
il aurait colorié Il aurait colorié le dessin. He would have colored the drawing.
elle aurait colorié Elle aurait colorié avec ses enfants. She would have colored with her children.
on aurait colorié On aurait colorié ensemble. One would have colored together.
nous aurions colorié Nous aurions colorié en rouge. We would have colored in red.
vous auriez colorié Vous auriez colorié le paysage. You would have colored the landscape.
ils auraient colorié Ils auraient colorié le ciel en bleu. They would have colored the sky in blue.
elles auraient colorié Elles auraient colorié des animaux. They (female) would have colored animals.

Other Conjugations for Colorier.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb colorier
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Colorier – 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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