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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb espacer

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The English translation of the French verb espacer is “to space out” or “to spread out”. The infinitive form is pronounced as [eh-spah-say].

Espacer comes from the French word “espace” which means space. It is most often used in everyday French in the Conditionnel Passé tense to express actions that would have been spaced out or spread out in the past, if certain conditions had been met.

Here are three simple examples of its usage in this tense, with the respective English translations:

  1. Si j’avais eu plus de temps, j’aurais espacé mes rendez-vous. (If I had had more time, I would have spaced out my appointments.)

  2. Nous aurions espacé les plantes dans le jardin, si le temps l’avait permis. (We would have spread out the plants in the garden, if the weather had allowed it.)

  3. Ils auraient espacé leurs vacances s’ils avaient su que la plage serait bondée. (They would have spaced out their vacation if they had known the beach would be crowded.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais espacé Si j’avais su, j’aurais espacé mes affaires. I would have spaced out my things.
tu aurais espacé Tu aurais espacé les plantes. You would have spaced out the plants.
il aurait espacé Il aurait espacé les lettres. He would have spaced out the letters.
elle aurait espacé Elle aurait espacé les livres. She would have spaced out the books.
on aurait espacé On aurait espacé les tables. One would have spaced out the tables.
nous aurions espacé Nous aurions espacé la salle. We would have spaced out the room.
vous auriez espacé Vous auriez espacé les chaises. You would have spaced out the chairs.
ils auraient espacé Ils auraient espacé les tasses. They would have spaced out the cups.
elles auraient espacé Elles auraient espacé les assiettes. They (female) would have spaced out the plates.

Other Conjugations for Espacer.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb espacer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Espacer – 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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