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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb encercler

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The English translation of the French verb encercler is “to encircle” or “to surround”. The infinitive form is pronounced as ahn-ser-kle.

The word encercler comes from the Latin word “circulus” meaning “circle”. It is most often used in everyday French to describe the action of surrounding or enclosing something or someone.

In the Conditionnel Passé tense, encercler is used to talk about an action that would have been completed in the past if certain conditions had been met. Here are three examples of its usage in this tense:

  1. Si j’avais été plus rapide, j’aurais pu encercler l’ennemi avant qu’il ne s’échappe. (If I had been faster, I could have surrounded the enemy before they escaped.)

  2. Nous aurions encerclé la ville si nous avions eu plus de soldats. (We would have surrounded the city if we had had more soldiers.)

  3. Tu aurais encerclé la maison avec les barrières si tu avais pensé à la sécurité. (You would have surrounded the house with barriers if you had thought about safety.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais encerclé Si j’avais su, je t’aurais encerclé. I would have surrounded you.
tu aurais encerclé Tu aurais encerclé la maison. You would have surrounded the house.
il aurait encerclé Il aurait encerclé la ville. He would have surrounded the city.
elle aurait encerclé Elle aurait encerclé le parc. She would have surrounded the park.
on aurait encerclé On aurait encerclé l’île. One would have surrounded the island.
nous aurions encerclé Nous aurions encerclé la région. We would have surrounded the region.
vous auriez encerclé Vous auriez encerclé le quartier. You would have surrounded the neighborhood.
ils auraient encerclé Ils auraient encerclé la frontière. They would have surrounded the border.
elles auraient encerclé Elles auraient encerclé la montagne. They (female) would have surrounded the mountain.

Other Conjugations for Encercler.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb encercler
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Encercler – 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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