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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb décourager

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The English translation of the French verb décourager is “to discourage.” It is pronounced as “day-koor-ah-zhay.”

The word décourager comes from the Old French word “descoragier,” which means “to lose courage.” It is a combination of the prefix “des-” (meaning “away”) and the word “corage” (meaning “courage”). It is most often used in everyday French in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which is used to express a hypothetical or unrealized action in the past.

3 examples of décourager in the Conditionnel Passé tense, with their English translations, are:

  1. Si j’avais échoué à l’examen, cela m’aurait découragé de poursuivre mes études. (If I had failed the exam, it would have discouraged me from continuing my studies.)

  2. Nous aurions été découragés si personne n’était venu à notre spectacle. (We would have been discouraged if no one had come to our show.)

  3. Tu aurais été découragé si je t’avais dit la vérité à ce moment-là. (You would have been discouraged if I had told you the truth at that time.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais découragé Si j’avais su, je t’aurais découragé. I would have discouraged you.
tu aurais découragé Tu aurais découragé plus tôt. You would have discouraged earlier.
il aurait découragé Il aurait découragé ses adversaires. He would have discouraged his opponents.
elle aurait découragé Elle aurait découragé ses élèves. She would have discouraged her students.
on aurait découragé On aurait découragé cette idée. One would have discouraged this idea.
nous aurions découragé Nous aurions découragé le groupe. We would have discouraged the group.
vous auriez découragé Vous auriez découragé ces comportements. You would have discouraged these behaviors.
ils auraient découragé Ils auraient découragé leurs ennemis. They would have discouraged their enemies.
elles auraient découragé Elles auraient découragé ces projets. They (female) would have discouraged these projects.

Other Conjugations for Décourager.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb décourager
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Décourager – 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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