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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb engamer

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The English translation for the French verb engamer is “to engage” or “to involve”. It is pronounced as “ahn-gah-may”.

The word engamer comes from the Old French word “gaimer”, meaning “to enjoy” or “to take pleasure in”. It was then combined with the prefix “en-” to create the verb engamer, which means “to put oneself in a state of enjoyment or pleasure”.

In everyday French, engamer is most often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses past possibilities or hypothetical scenarios. It is formed by using the conditional auxiliary verb “aurais” followed by the past participle of engamer, which is “engamé”.

Here are three simple examples of how engamer is used in the Conditionnel Passé tense:

  1. Si j’avais su à quel point ce travail allait m’engamer, je ne l’aurais pas accepté. (If I had known how much this job would involve me, I wouldn’t have accepted it.)
  2. Tu aurais mieux fait de ne pas t’engamer dans cette histoire. (You would have been better off not getting involved in this situation.)
  3. Nous aurions aimé nous engamer davantage dans cette communauté. (We would have liked to engage more in this community.)

In these examples, the verb engamer is used to express involvement or engagement in a certain situation or activity. It can also be used to indicate enjoyment or pleasure, as seen in the first example.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais engamé Si j’avais su, je t’aurais engamé. I would have hooked you.
tu aurais engamé Tu aurais engamé plus tôt. You would have hooked earlier.
il aurait engamé Il aurait engamé du poisson. He would have caught fish.
elle aurait engamé Elle aurait engamé un gros requin. She would have hooked a big shark.
on aurait engamé On aurait engamé dans cette rivière. One would have fished in this river.
nous aurions engamé Nous aurions engamé dans le lac. We would have fished in the lake.
vous auriez engamé Vous auriez engamé avec vos amis. You would have fished with your friends.
ils auraient engamé Ils auraient engamé dans l’océan. They would have fished in the ocean.
elles auraient engamé Elles auraient engamé un gros thon. They (female) would have hooked a big tuna.

Other Conjugations for Engamer.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb engamer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Engamer – 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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