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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb désister

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The English translation of the French verb désister is “to withdraw” or “to give up.” It is pronounced “dee-zee-stay” as an infinitive form.

The word désister comes from the Latin desistere, meaning “to stop” or “to desist.” It is most often used in everyday French in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which is formed with the auxiliary verb avoir and the past participle désisté. This tense is used to express a hypothetical or imagined action that did not happen in the past.

Here are three simple examples of its usage in the Conditionnel Passé tense, with their respective English translations:

  1. J’aurais désisté si tu m’avais demandé de le faire. (I would have withdrawn if you had asked me to do it.)

  2. Ils auraient désisté s’ils avaient su les règles du jeu. (They would have given up if they had known the rules of the game.)

  3. Elle aurait désisté de son projet s’il n’y avait pas eu de soutien. (She would have abandoned her project if there had not been support.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je me serais désisté Si j’avais su, je me serais désisté. I would have withdrawn.
tu te serais désisté Tu te serais désisté plus tôt. You would have withdrawn earlier.
il se serait désisté Il se serait désisté de la compétition. He would have withdrawn from the competition.
elle se serait désistée Elle se serait désistée du projet. She would have withdrawn from the project.
on se serait désisté On se serait désisté de l’affaire. One would have withdrawn from the matter.
nous nous serions désistés Nous nous serions désistés du conflit. We would have withdrawn from the conflict.
vous vous seriez désisté Vous vous seriez désisté après le vote. You would have withdrawn after the vote.
ils se seraient désistés Ils se seraient désistés de leur promesse. They would have withdrawn from their promise.
elles se seraient désistées Elles se seraient désistées après le match. They (female) would have withdrawn after the match.

Other Conjugations for Désister.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb désister
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Désister – 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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