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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb costumer

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The English translation of the French verb “costumer” is “to dress up” or “to costume”. It is pronounced as “koh-stew-may”.

The word “costumer” comes from the French noun “costume” which means “costume” or “outfit”. It is most often used in everyday French in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which is used to express a hypothetical or possible action in the past.

Here are three simple examples of its usage in this tense, with their respective English translations:

  1. Si j’avais su qu’il y aurait une soirée costumée, je me serais costumé en pirate. (If I had known there would be a costume party, I would have dressed up as a pirate.)
  2. Nous aurions pu gagner le concours de déguisements si nous nous étions bien costumés. (We could have won the costume contest if we had dressed up well.)
  3. Elle se serait beaucoup amusée si elle s’était costumée en princesse pour le bal. (She would have had a lot of fun if she had dressed up as a princess for the ball.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais costumé J’aurais costumé mon chien. I would have dressed up my dog.
tu aurais costumé Tu aurais costumé ta sœur. You would have dressed up your sister.
il aurait costumé Il aurait costumé le chat. He would have dressed up the cat.
elle aurait costumé Elle aurait costumé son frère. She would have dressed up her brother.
on aurait costumé On aurait costumé notre voiture. One would have dressed up our car.
nous aurions costumé Nous aurions costumé la maison. We would have dressed up the house.
vous auriez costumé Vous auriez costumé les enfants. You would have dressed up the children.
ils auraient costumé Ils auraient costumé leur chien. They would have dressed up their dog.
elles auraient costumé Elles auraient costumé leur chat. They (female) would have dressed up their cat.

Other Conjugations for Costumer.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb costumer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Costumer – 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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