Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb contre-miner

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The English translation of the French verb contre-miner is “to counter-mine.” It is pronounced “kohn-truh-mee-nehr.”

The language origin of contre-miner comes from the combination of the prefix “contre,” meaning “against,” and the verb “miner,” meaning “to mine.” In everyday French, contre-miner is most often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which is the conditional perfect tense. This tense is used to express actions that would have taken place in the past under certain conditions.

Examples of contre-miner in the Conditionnel Passé tense are:

  1. Si j’avais su qu’ils allaient nous attaquer, j’aurais contre-miné leurs plans.
    Translation: If I had known they were going to attack us, I would have counter-mined their plans.

  2. Nous aurions pu éviter cette catastrophe si nous avions contre-miné les tunnels avant.
    Translation: We could have avoided this disaster if we had counter-mined the tunnels beforehand.

  3. Si vous aviez écouté mes conseils, vous n’auriez pas eu besoin de contre-miner la ville entière.
    Translation: If you had listened to my advice, you wouldn’t have needed to counter-mine the entire city.

Table of the Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of contre-miner

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais contre-miné Si j’avais su, je t’aurais contre-miné. I would have counter-mined you.
tu aurais contre-miné Tu aurais contre-miné plus tôt. You would have counter-mined earlier.
il aurait contre-miné Il aurait contre-miné le plan. He would have counter-mined the plan.
elle aurait contre-miné Elle aurait contre-miné la proposition. She would have counter-mined the proposition.
on aurait contre-miné On aurait contre-miné les ennemis. One would have counter-mined the enemies.
nous aurions contre-miné Nous aurions contre-miné ensemble. We would have counter-mined together.
vous auriez contre-miné Vous auriez contre-miné les obstacles. You would have counter-mined the obstacles.
ils auraient contre-miné Ils auraient contre-miné le complot. They would have counter-mined the plot.
elles auraient contre-miné Elles auraient contre-miné les attaques. They (female) would have counter-mined the attacks.

Other Conjugations for Contre-Miner.

    

    Le Present (Present Tense) Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner
     

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner
     

    Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner
     

    Passé Composé (Present Perfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner
     

    Futur Simple (Simple Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner
     

    Futur Proche (Near Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner
     

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

    Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner

    Futur Antérieur (Future Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner

    Subjonctif Présent (Subjunctive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner

    Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner
     

    Subjonctif Imparfait (Subjunctive Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner

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

    Conditionnel Présent (Conditional Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner
     

    Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner  (this article)

    L’impératif Présent (Imperative Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner

    L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contre-miner


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Contre-Miner – 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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