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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb confronter

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The English translation of the French verb confronter is “to confront” or “to face”. It is pronounced as “koh(n)-frohn-tey”.

The word confronter comes from the Latin word “confrontare”, which means “to bring face to face”. It entered the French language in the 16th century and is still used in everyday language today.

In the Conditionnel Passé tense, confronter is used to express a hypothetical past action or situation. It is often used to express a regret or a missed opportunity in the past.

Examples of confronter in the Conditionnel Passé tense:

  1. Si j’avais su la vérité, je l’aurais confrontée. (If I had known the truth, I would have confronted her.)
  2. Nous aurions pu régler ce problème si nous l’avions confronté plus tôt. (We could have solved this problem if we had confronted it earlier.)
  3. Je regrette de ne pas l’avoir confronté quand j’en avais l’occasion. (I regret not having confronted him when I had the chance.)

English translations:

  1. If I had known the truth, I would have confronted her.
  2. We could have solved this problem if we had confronted it earlier.
  3. I regret not having confronted him when I had the chance.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais confronté Si j’avais su, je t’aurais confronté. I would have confronted you.
tu aurais confronté Tu aurais confronté ton patron. You would have confronted your boss.
il aurait confronté Il aurait confronté la situation. He would have confronted the situation.
elle aurait confronté Elle aurait confronté sa peur. She would have confronted her fear.
on aurait confronté On aurait confronté la vérité. One would have confronted the truth.
nous aurions confronté Nous aurions confronté le problème. We would have confronted the problem.
vous auriez confronté Vous auriez confronté ces accusations. You would have confronted these accusations.
ils auraient confronté Ils auraient confronté leur ennemi. They would have confronted their enemy.
elles auraient confronté Elles auraient confronté leur mère. They (female) would have confronted their mother.

Other Conjugations for Confronter.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb confronter
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Confronter – 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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