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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb emparer

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The English translation of the French verb emparer is “to seize” or “to take hold of”. It is pronounced as “ehm-pa-ray”.

Emparer originated from the Old French word “empaer”, which comes from the Latin word “imparare” meaning “to put in or take possession”. In everyday French, it is often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses a hypothetical action in the past.

Here are three examples of emparer in the Conditionnel Passé tense with their English translations:

  1. Si j’avais su, j’aurais pu m’emparer de cette opportunité. (If I had known, I could have seized this opportunity.)
  2. Elle aurait aimé s’emparer du pouvoir mais elle n’a pas réussi. (She would have liked to seize power but she didn’t succeed.)
  3. Si nous avions eu plus de temps, nous nous serions emparés de toute la ville. (If we had had more time, we would have taken hold of the entire city.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je me serais emparé Si j’avais su, je me serais emparé du pouvoir. I would have seized power.
tu te serais emparé Tu te serais emparé de l’entreprise. You would have taken over the company.
il se serait emparé Il se serait emparé du trésor. He would have seized the treasure.
elle se serait emparée Elle se serait emparée de la situation. She would have taken control of the situation.
on se serait emparé On se serait emparé de la ville. One would have taken over the city.
nous nous serions emparés Nous nous serions emparés de la situation. We would have taken control of the situation.
vous vous seriez emparés Vous vous seriez emparés de la situation. You would have taken control of the situation.
ils se seraient emparés Ils se seraient emparés de la situation. They would have taken control of the situation.
elles se seraient emparées Elles se seraient emparées de la situation. They (female) would have taken control of the situation.

Other Conjugations for Emparer.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb emparer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Emparer – 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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