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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb décimer

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The English translation of the French verb décimer is “to decimate.” It is pronounced as “day-see-may.”

The word décimer comes from the Latin word “decimare,” meaning “to take a tenth.” It was originally used in reference to the Roman army’s practice of punishing mutinous soldiers by killing every tenth man. Over time, the meaning of the word evolved to refer to any widespread destruction or devastation.

In everyday French, décimer is most often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which is used to express a hypothetical or uncertain past action. It is formed by using the conditional of the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être,” followed by the past participle of décimer.

Here are three examples of décimer used in the Conditionnel Passé tense with their English translations:

  1. Si nous avions décimé la forêt, les animaux auraient perdu leur habitat. (If we had decimated the forest, the animals would have lost their habitat.)

  2. Ils seraient arrivés à temps s’ils n’avaient pas été décimés par la maladie. (They would have arrived on time if they had not been decimated by the disease.)

  3. Si le tsunami n’avait pas décimé le village, il serait encore un lieu de vie paisible. (If the tsunami had not decimated the village, it would still be a peaceful place to live.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais décimé Si j’avais su, j’aurais décimé mes ennemis. I would have decimated my enemies.
tu aurais décimé Tu aurais décimé la population. You would have decimated the population.
il aurait décimé Il aurait décimé la forêt. He would have decimated the forest.
elle aurait décimé Elle aurait décimé ses concurrents. She would have decimated her competitors.
on aurait décimé On aurait décimé les cultures. One would have decimated the crops.
nous aurions décimé Nous aurions décimé la ville. We would have decimated the city.
vous auriez décimé Vous auriez décimé les ressources. You would have decimated the resources.
ils auraient décimé Ils auraient décimé l’armée adverse. They would have decimated the opposing army.
elles auraient décimé Elles auraient décimé les colonies. They (female) would have decimated the colonies.

Other Conjugations for Décimer.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb décimer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Décimer – 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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