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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb décliner

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The English translation of the French verb décliner is “to decline” or “to refuse.” It is pronounced as “day-klee-nay” in the infinitive form.

The word décliner comes from the Latin verb declinare, which means “to turn away” or “to avoid.” In everyday French, décliner is most often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses a hypothetical or possible action that would have happened in the past.

Here are three simple examples of décliner being used in the Conditionnel Passé tense with their respective English translations:

  1. Si j’avais eu le temps, j’aurais décliné l’invitation. (If I had had the time, I would have declined the invitation.)
  2. Il aurait décliné toutes les offres d’emploi s’il avait eu le choix. (He would have declined all job offers if he had had the choice.)
  3. Nous aurions décliné leur proposition si elle ne nous convenait pas. (We would have declined their offer if it didn’t suit us.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais décliné Si j’avais plus de temps, je t’aurais décliné. I would have declined it if I had more time.
tu aurais décliné Tu aurais décliné l’invitation. You would have declined the invitation.
il aurait décliné Il aurait décliné l’offre. He would have turned down the offer.
elle aurait décliné Elle aurait décliné sa responsabilité. She would have declined her responsibility.
on aurait décliné On aurait décliné cette demande. One would have declined this request.
nous aurions décliné Nous aurions décliné l’offre. We would have declined the offer.
vous auriez décliné Vous auriez décliné notre proposition. You would have declined our proposal.
ils auraient décliné Ils auraient décliné l’invitation. They would have declined the invitation.
elles auraient décliné Elles auraient décliné cette offre. They (female) would have declined this offer.

Other Conjugations for Décliner.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb décliner
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Décliner – 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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