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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb enrhumer

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The English translation of the French verb enrhumer is “to give a cold to” or “to catch a cold.” The infinitive form, enrhumer, is pronounced “ahn-ruh-may.”

Enrhumer comes from the French noun “rhume,” meaning “cold,” and the prefix “en-” which can indicate a causative action. In everyday French, this verb is most often used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses a hypothetical or non-real action that would have taken place in the past.

Three simple examples of enrhumer in the Conditionnel Passé tense, with their English translations, are:

  1. Si tu avais dormi avec la fenêtre ouverte, tu aurais pu t’enrhumer. (If you had slept with the window open, you could have caught a cold.)
  2. Il se serait enrhumé s’il n’avait pas pris de vitamines. (He would have gotten a cold if he hadn’t taken vitamins.)
  3. Nous aurions évité de nous enrhumer si nous avions porté des manteaux plus chauds. (We would have avoided catching a cold if we had worn warmer coats.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais enrhumé Si j’avais su, je t’aurais enrhumé. I would have given you a cold.
tu aurais enrhumé Tu aurais enrhumé plus tôt. You would have given a cold earlier.
il aurait enrhumé Il aurait enrhumé tout le monde. He would have given everyone a cold.
elle aurait enrhumé Elle aurait enrhumé son frère. She would have given her brother a cold.
on aurait enrhumé On aurait tous été enrhumés. We would have all gotten a cold.
nous aurions enrhumé Nous aurions été enrhumés depuis hier. We would have had a cold since yesterday.
vous auriez enrhumé Vous auriez enrhumé toute la famille. You would have given the whole family a cold.
ils auraient enrhumé Ils auraient été enrhumés en hiver. They would have had a cold in winter.
elles auraient enrhumé Elles auraient enrhumé leurs enfants. They (female) would have given their children a cold.

Other Conjugations for Enrhumer.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb enrhumer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Enrhumer – 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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