Conditionnel Présent (Conditional Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Introduction to the verb commencer
The English translation of commencer is “to begin” or “to start.” The infinitive form is pronounced as kuh-mahn-say.
The word commencer comes from the Latin word “comminisci,” meaning “to invent, devise.” It was adopted into Old French as “comencier” and eventually evolved into the modern French form “commencer.”
In everyday French, commencer is most often used in the Conditionnel Présent tense to express a hypothetical or possible action that would take place in the future, or to make a polite request or suggestion.
Here are three simple examples of commencer in the Conditionnel Présent tense:
- Si j’avais plus de temps, je commencerai ce projet demain. (If I had more time, I would start this project tomorrow.)
- Je voudrais commencer à apprendre l’espagnol. (I would like to start learning Spanish.)
- Pourriez-vous commencer le repas sans moi ? (Could you start the meal without me?)
Note: In spoken French, the Conditionnel Présent tense is often replaced with the Futur Simple. Therefore, the above examples could also be translated as follows:
- Si j’avais plus de temps, je commencerai/je commencerai à travailler sur ce projet demain.
- Je voudrais commencer/je commencerai à apprendre l’espagnol.
- Pourriez-vous commencer/commencerez-vous le repas sans moi ?
Table of the Conditionnel Présent (Conditional Present) Tense Conjugation of commencer
Pronoun | Conjugation | Example Usage | English Translation |
---|---|---|---|
je | commencerais | Je commencerais à étudier. | I would start studying. |
tu | commencerais | Tu commencerais à lire. | You would start reading. |
il | commencerait | Il commencerait à travailler. | He would start working. |
elle | commencerait | Elle commencerait à cuisiner. | She would start cooking. |
on | commencerait | On commencerait le projet. | One would start the project. |
nous | commencerions | Nous commencerions le voyage. | We would start the trip. |
vous | commenceriez | Vous commenceriez à chanter. | You would start singing. |
ils | commenceraient | Ils commenceraient à danser. | They would start dancing. |
elles | commenceraient | Elles commenceraient à peindre. | They would start painting. |
Other Conjugations for Commencer.
Le Present (Present Tense) Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Passé Composé (Present Perfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Futur Simple (Simple Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Futur Proche (Near Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Futur Antérieur (Future Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Subjonctif Présent (Subjunctive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Subjonctif Imparfait (Subjunctive Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait (Subjunctive Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
Conditionnel Présent (Conditional Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer (this article)
Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
L’impératif Présent (Imperative Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb commencer
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Commencer – About the French Conditionnel Présent (Conditional Present) Tense
Formation
Common Everyday Usage Patterns
Expressing Polite Requests
Expressing Hypothetical Situations
Expressing Doubt or Uncertainty
Interactions with Other Tenses
Present Tense
Past Tense
Future Tense
Conditional Perfect
Summary
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