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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb excaver

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The English translation of the French verb excaver is “to excavate.” The infinitive form is pronounced as “eks-kah-vay.”

The word excaver comes from the Latin verb “excavare,” meaning “to hollow out.” It is most often used in everyday French in its Conditionnel Passé tense, which indicates a hypothetical or uncertain action that would have taken place in the past.

Here are three simple examples of its usage in the Conditionnel Passé tense, with their English translations:

  1. Si j’avais eu plus de temps, j’aurais excavé le jardin. (If I had had more time, I would have excavated the garden.)
  2. Ils auraient excavé la mine s’ils avaient obtenu les permissions nécessaires. (They would have excavated the mine if they had obtained the necessary permissions.)
  3. Elle aurait excavé le sol pour trouver des fossiles, si elle avait été archéologue. (She would have excavated the ground to find fossils, if she had been an archaeologist.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais excavé Si j’avais su, je t’aurais excavé. I would have dug you out.
tu aurais excavé Tu aurais excavé plus tôt. You would have dug earlier.
il aurait excavé Il aurait excavé la terre. He would have dug the ground.
elle aurait excavé Elle aurait excavé le fossé. She would have dug the ditch.
on aurait excavé On aurait excavé pour trouver de l’eau. One would have dug to find water.
nous aurions excavé Nous aurions excavé un tunnel. We would have dug a tunnel.
vous auriez excavé Vous auriez excavé les vestiges. You would have excavated the remains.
ils auraient excavé Ils auraient excavé le site. They would have excavated the site.
elles auraient excavé Elles auraient excavé la grotte. They (female) would have excavated the cave.

Other Conjugations for Excaver.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb excaver
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Excaver – 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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