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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb désembuer

Get the Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) tense conjugation of désembuer. Includes a FREE downloadable reference sheet (no email required). Alternatively if you have a lot of text to check then use our free French Grammar Checker – no registration required!

The English translation of the French verb désembuer is “to defrost” or “to de-mist”. It is pronounced as “day-sahn-boo-ay”.

Désembuer is derived from the word “brouillard” which means “fog” in French. The prefix “dés-” means “removal” or “un-” and “em-buer” means “to fog up”. Therefore, désembuer literally means “to un-fog” or “to remove fog”.

In everyday French, désembuer is most often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses a conditional action in the past. It is usually used to express a hypothetical or imagined action that did not actually occur in the past.

Here are three examples of désembuer in the Conditionnel Passé tense:

  1. Si j’avais désembué le pare-brise plus tôt, nous aurions pu éviter l’accident. (If I had defrosted the windshield earlier, we could have avoided the accident.)

  2. Il m’aurait fallu désembuer mes lunettes pour mieux voir. (I would have had to de-fog my glasses to see better.)

  3. Nous aurions désembué les vitres avant de partir si nous avions su qu’il allait pleuvoir. (We would have demisted the windows before leaving if we had known it was going to rain.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais désembué Si j’avais su, je t’aurais désembué. I would have defogged you.
tu aurais désembué Tu aurais désembué plus tôt. You would have defogged earlier.
il aurait désembué Il aurait désembué la vitre. He would have defogged the window.
elle aurait désembué Elle aurait désembué son miroir. She would have defogged her mirror.
on aurait désembué On aurait désembué le pare-brise. One would have defogged the windshield.
nous aurions désembué Nous aurions désembué la salle de bain. We would have defogged the bathroom.
vous auriez désembué Vous auriez désembué les lunettes. You would have defogged the glasses.
ils auraient désembué Ils auraient désembué la voiture. They would have defogged the car.
elles auraient désembué Elles auraient désembué les miroirs. They (female) would have defogged the mirrors.

Other Conjugations for Désembuer.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb désembuer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


    Struggling with French verbs or the language in general? Why not use our free French Grammar Checker – no registration required! 

  

Get a FREE Download Study Sheet of this Conjugation 🔥

Simply right click the image below, click “save image” and get your free reference for the désembuer Conditionnel Passé tense conjugation!

Désembuer – 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.

Want More?

I hope you enjoyed this article on the verb désembuer. Still in a learning mood? Check out another TOTALLY random French verb conjugation!

Similar Posts