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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb désentortiller

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The English translation of the French verb désentortiller is “to untangle.” It is pronounced as “day-zawn-tor-tee-yay.”

Désentortiller is a compound verb made up of the prefix “dés-” which means “un-” or “de-” and the verb “entortiller” which means “to tangle.” It is derived from the Latin verb tortus, meaning “twisted” or “bent.” In everyday French, désentortiller is used in the Conditionnel Passé tense to express a hypothetical past action or situation that did not actually happen.

Three examples of désentortiller in the Conditionnel Passé tense are:

  1. Si j’avais su, je t’aurais désentortillé les cheveux. (If I had known, I would have untangled your hair.)

  2. Elle aurait désentortillé les fils électriques avant d’essayer de les brancher. (She would have untangled the electrical wires before trying to plug them in.)

  3. Nous aurions dû désentortiller les problèmes avant de prendre une décision. (We should have untangled the problems before making a decision.)

In all of these examples, the speaker is imagining a past situation where they could have untangled something, but didn’t. The Conditionnel Passé tense is used to express this hypothetical regret.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais désentortillé Si j’avais plus de temps, je l’aurais désentortillé. If I had more time, I would have untangled it.
tu aurais désentortillé Tu aurais désentortillé ce câble en un rien de temps. You would have untangled this cable in no time.
il aurait désentortillé Il aurait désentortillé les cordons électriques. He would have untangled the electrical cords.
elle aurait désentortillé Elle aurait désentortillé ses cheveux. She would have untangled her hair.
on aurait désentortillé On aurait désentortillé l’écheveau de laine. One would have untangled the ball of wool.
nous aurions désentortillé Nous aurions désentortillé la chaîne de vélo. We would have untangled the bike chain.
vous auriez désentortillé Vous auriez désentortillé les fils ensemble. You would have untangled the wires together.
ils auraient désentortillé Ils auraient désentortillé les branches emmêlées. They would have untangled the tangled branches.
elles auraient désentortillé Elles auraient désentortillé les fils électriques. They (female) would have untangled the electrical wires.

Other Conjugations for Désentortiller.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb désentortiller
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Désentortiller – 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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