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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb en contrebalancer

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The English translation of the French verb en contrebalancer is “to counterbalance.” It is pronounced as “ahn kohn-truh-bal-ahn-say.”

The word en contrebalancer comes from the French word “contre” meaning “against” and “balancer” meaning “to balance.” In every day French, it is most often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses an action that would have happened in the past if something else had happened.

Three simple examples of its usage in this tense are:

  1. Si j’avais mangé trop de bonbons, je serais tombé malade. Heureusement, j’ai bu de l’eau pour en contrebalancer les effets. (If I had eaten too many candies, I would have gotten sick. Luckily, I drank water to counterbalance the effects.)

  2. Si tu avais travaillé plus dur, tu aurais eu de meilleures notes à l’examen. Mais tu n’as pas fait d’effort pour en contrebalancer tes lacunes. (If you had worked harder, you would have had better grades on the exam. But you didn’t make an effort to counterbalance your weaknesses.)

  3. S’il avait pris des vacances, il aurait pu en contrebalancer son stress et éviter le burnout. (If he had taken a vacation, he could have counterbalanced his stress and avoided burnout.)

Table of the Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of en contrebalancer

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais en contrebalancé J’aurais en contrebalancé les effets. I would have counterbalanced the effects.
tu aurais en contrebalancé Tu aurais en contrebalancé ses arguments. You would have counterbalanced his arguments.
il aurait en contrebalancé Il aurait en contrebalancé ses actes. He would have counterbalanced his deeds.
elle aurait en contrebalancé Elle aurait en contrebalancé ses paroles. She would have counterbalanced her words.
on aurait en contrebalancé On aurait en contrebalancé les inégalités. One would have counterbalanced the inequalities.
nous aurions en contrebalancé Nous aurions en contrebalancé nos actions. We would have counterbalanced our actions.
vous auriez en contrebalancé Vous auriez en contrebalancé les risques. You would have counterbalanced the risks.
ils auraient en contrebalancé Ils auraient en contrebalancé les conséquences. They would have counterbalanced the consequences.
elles auraient en contrebalancé Elles auraient en contrebalancé les dépenses. They (female) would have counterbalanced the expenses.

Other Conjugations for En Contrebalancer.

    

    Le Present (Present Tense) Conjugation of the French Verb en contrebalancer
     

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb en contrebalancer
     

    Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb en contrebalancer
     

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

    Futur Simple (Simple Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb en contrebalancer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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En Contrebalancer – 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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