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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb flotter

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The English translation of the French verb flotter is “to float.” It is pronounced as “flo-tay” in the infinitive form.

The word flotter comes from the Latin word “fluctuare” which means “to float or fluctuate.” It is most often used in everyday French in the Conditionnel Passé tense, which expresses an action that would have happened in the past under certain conditions.

Examples of its usage in the Conditionnel Passé tense with English translations are:

  1. Si j’avais pris un bateau, j’aurais flotté sur l’océan. (If I had taken a boat, I would have floated on the ocean.)
  2. Nous aurions flotté des bougies sur la rivière pour commémorer leur mémoire. (We would have floated candles on the river to commemorate their memory.)
  3. Si tu avais laissé la fenêtre ouverte, les feuilles auraient flotté dans la chambre. (If you had left the window open, the leaves would have floated into the room.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aurais flotté Si j’étais allé à la plage, j’aurais flotté dans l’eau. If I had gone to the beach, I would have floated in the water.
tu aurais flotté Tu aurais flotté sur le lac. You would have floated on the lake.
il aurait flotté Il aurait flotté avec les nuages. He would have floated with the clouds.
elle aurait flotté Elle aurait flotté sur la mer. She would have floated on the sea.
on aurait flotté On aurait flotté sur la rivière. One would have floated on the river.
nous aurions flotté Nous aurions flotté sur le bateau. We would have floated on the boat.
vous auriez flotté Vous auriez flotté sur les vagues. You would have floated on the waves.
ils auraient flotté Ils auraient flotté sur les planches de surf. They would have floated on the surfboards.
elles auraient flotté Elles auraient flotté sur les bouées. They (female) would have floated on the inner tubes.

Other Conjugations for Flotter.

    

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb flotter
     

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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Flotter – 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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