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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb croquer

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The English translation of the French verb croquer is “to crunch” or “to bite into.” The infinitive form is pronounced as “kro-kay.”

The word croquer comes from the Old French word “crochier,” which means “to bite.” It is most often used in everyday French in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which is formed by using the auxiliary verb “avoir” in the Conditionnel Présent tense and the past participle form of the verb.

Three simple examples of its usage in this tense are:

  1. Si j’avais eu faim, j’aurais croqué dans cette pomme délicieuse. (If I had been hungry, I would have bitten into this delicious apple.)

  2. Ils auraient croqué tous les bonbons s’ils avaient eu le temps. (They would have crunched on all the candies if they had had the time.)

  3. Nous aurions croqué tous les légumes si nous avions su que c’était notre dernier repas. (We would have bitten into all the vegetables if we had known it was our last meal.)

In everyday French, croquer is often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense to express something that might have happened in the past under certain circumstances. It can also be used in a more literal sense to talk about biting into food.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais croqué Si j’avais plus faim, j’aurais croqué cette pomme. If I were hungrier, I would have bitten into this apple.
tu aurais croqué Tu aurais croqué ce sandwich. You would have eaten this sandwich.
il aurait croqué Il aurait croqué la viande. He would have eaten the meat.
elle aurait croqué Elle aurait croqué les légumes. She would have eaten the vegetables.
on aurait croqué On aurait croqué des fruits. One would have eaten fruits.
nous aurions croqué Nous aurions croqué du pain. We would have eaten some bread.
vous auriez croqué Vous auriez croqué ces bonbons. You would have eaten these candies.
ils auraient croqué Ils auraient croqué des gâteaux. They would have eaten some cakes.
elles auraient croqué Elles auraient croqué du chocolat. They (female) would have eaten some chocolate.

Other Conjugations for Croquer.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb croquer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Croquer – 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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