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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb essaimer

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The English translation of the French verb essaimer is “to swarm” or “to spread out.” It is pronounced as “eh-seh-meh.”

Essaimer comes from the Old French word “essaim,” meaning “swarm,” and ultimately derives from the Latin word “exeamus,” meaning “let us go out.” In everyday French, essaimer is most commonly used in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses a hypothetical action in the past.

Three simple examples of essaimer in the Conditionnel Passé tense are:

  1. Si j’avais des abeilles, elles se seraient essaimées dans tout le jardin. (If I had bees, they would have swarmed all over the garden.)
  2. Nous aurions dû tondre la pelouse plus tôt, maintenant elle est essaimée d’orties. (We should have mowed the lawn earlier, now it’s swarmed with nettles.)
  3. Tu te souviens de cette époque où les punaises se seraient essaimées dans toute l’école ? (Do you remember that time when bedbugs would have spread throughout the whole school?)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais essaimé Si j’avais su, j’aurais essaimé. I would have swarmed.
tu aurais essaimé Tu aurais essaimé plus tôt. You would have swarmed earlier.
il aurait essaimé Il aurait essaimé avec les abeilles. He would have swarmed with the bees.
elle aurait essaimé Elle aurait essaimé dans son jardin. She would have swarmed in her garden.
on aurait essaimé On aurait essaimé dans la nature. One would have swarmed in nature.
nous aurions essaimé Nous aurions essaimé en été. We would have swarmed in summer.
vous auriez essaimé Vous auriez essaimé avec les autres abeilles. You would have swarmed with the other bees.
ils auraient essaimé Ils auraient essaimé dans la forêt. They would have swarmed in the forest.
elles auraient essaimé Elles auraient essaimé vers les fleurs. They (female) would have swarmed towards the flowers.

Other Conjugations for Essaimer.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb essaimer
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Essaimer – 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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