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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb contracturer

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The English translation of the French verb contracturer is “to contract”. It is pronounced as “kon-trak-tyuh-ray”. It comes from the Latin word “contractus” meaning “to draw together” or “to bring together”. In everyday French, contracturer is most often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which is the conditional perfect tense.

Three simple examples of its usage in this tense are:

  1. Si tu avais contracturé tes muscles, tu aurais mal au dos. (If you had contracted your muscles, you would have had back pain.)
  2. J’aurais contracturé mon bras si j’avais soulevé ces lourds poids. (I would have contracted my arm if I had lifted those heavy weights.)
  3. Elle aurait contracturé sa mâchoire à force de mâcher du chewing-gum. (She would have contracted her jaw from chewing too much gum.)

In each of these examples, the verb contracturer is used in the conditional perfect tense to express a hypothetical situation in the past.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais contracturé Si j’ai trop forcé, je l’aurais contracturé. If I had pushed too hard, I would have strained it.
tu aurais contracturé Tu aurais contracturé ta jambe. You would have strained your leg.
il aurait contracturé Il aurait contracturé son muscle. He would have strained his muscle.
elle aurait contracturé Elle aurait contracturé son dos. She would have strained her back.
on aurait contracturé On aurait contracturé nos muscles. One would have strained our muscles.
nous aurions contracturé Nous aurions contracturé après l’entraînement. We would have strained after the workout.
vous auriez contracturé Vous auriez contracturé vos bras. You would have strained your arms.
ils auraient contracturé Ils auraient contracturé en soulevant des objets lourds. They would have strained while lifting heavy objects.
elles auraient contracturé Elles auraient contracturé en faisant du yoga. They (female) would have strained while doing yoga.

Other Conjugations for Contracturer.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contracturer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Contracturer – 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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