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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb alterner

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The English translation of the French verb alterner is “to alternate.” It is pronounced “ahl-ter-nay.”

The word “alterner” comes from the Latin word “alternare,” meaning “to alternate.” It is a regular -er verb, and is commonly used in everyday French to describe the action of alternating between two things.

In the Futur Antérieur tense, alterner is used to talk about an action that will have been completed at a specific future time. This tense is formed with the future of the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être,” followed by the past participle of alterner.

Here are three simple examples of alterner in the Futur Antérieur tense, with their respective English translations:

  1. Je serai fatigué après avoir alterné entre la marche et la course pendant une heure. (I will be tired after having alternated between walking and running for an hour.)

  2. Tu auras visité plusieurs pays européens avant d’alterner vers l’Asie. (You will have visited several European countries before alternating towards Asia.)

  3. Nous serons ravis d’avoir alterné nos vacances d’été entre la plage et la montagne. (We will be delighted to have alternated our summer vacation between the beach and the mountains.)

Table of the Futur Antérieur (Future Anterior) Tense Conjugation of alterner

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je j’aurai alterné J’aurai alterné entre les deux options. I will have alternated between the two options.
tu tu auras alterné Tu auras alterné les couleurs sur la palette. You will have alternated the colors on the palette.
il il aura alterné Il aura alterné les tâches avec son collègue. He will have alternated tasks with his colleague.
elle elle aura alterné Elle aura alterné les rôles avec son partenaire. She will have alternated roles with her partner.
on on aura alterné On aura alterné entre les deux chemins. One/We will have alternated between the two paths.
nous nous aurons alterné Nous aurons alterné les équipes chaque semaine. We will have alternated teams every week.
vous vous aurez alterné Vous aurez alterné les ingrédients dans la recette. You will have alternated ingredients in the recipe.
ils ils auront alterné Ils auront alterné les rôles dans la pièce de théâtre. They will have alternated roles in the play.
elles elles auront alterné Elles auront alterné entre les deux solutions. They will have alternated between the two solutions.

Other Conjugations for Alterner.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alterner
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

    Futur Antérieur (Future Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb alterner (this article)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    Struggling with French verbs or the language in general? Why not use our free French Grammar Checker – no registration required!
   

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Alterner – About the French Futur Antérieur (Future Anterior) Tense

The French futur antérieur tense is a compound tense used to express actions or events that will have occurred in the future before another action takes place. It is formed by using the future tense of the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être” (depending on the main verb) followed by 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.

Construction

1. For most verbs, use “avoir” as the auxiliary verb:
   – Subject + future tense of “avoir” + past participle
Example with the verb “manger” (to eat):
– J’aurai mangé (I will have eaten)
– Tu auras mangé (You will have eaten)
– Il/elle/on aura mangé (He/She/One will have eaten)
– Nous aurons mangé (We will have eaten)
– Vous aurez mangé (You will have eaten)
– Ils/elles auront mangé (They will have eaten)
2. For a select group of verbs, use “être” as the auxiliary verb. These are typically verbs of motion or state-changing verbs (e.g., aller, venir, naître, mourir, partir, etc.). The formation is the same, but the auxiliary verb is “être.”
Example with the verb “partir” (to leave):
– Je serai parti(e) (I will have left)
– Tu seras parti(e) (You will have left)
– Il/elle/on sera parti(e) (He/She/One will have left)
– Nous serons parti(e)s (We will have left)
– Vous serez parti(e)(s) (You will have left)
– Ils/elles seront parti(e)s (They will have left)

Common Everyday Usage Patterns

1. The futur antérieur is used to express an action that will be completed before a specific point in the future. For example:
   – Je partirai dès que j’aurai fini mon travail. (I will leave as soon as I have finished my work.)
   – Ils seront rentrés avant que la pluie commence. (They will have returned before the rain starts.)
2. It is often used with time expressions that indicate when the action will occur relative to another future action, such as “dès que” (as soon as), “avant que” (before), “une fois que” (once), etc.

Interactions with Other Tenses

– The futur antérieur tense is commonly used in combination with the future simple (futur simple) and other tenses to indicate the sequence of actions in the future. The futur antérieur typically refers to the action that will have been completed before another action takes place.

For example

– Quand tu auras terminé ton devoir, tu pourras sortir. (When you have finished your homework, you can go out.)
– J’irai te voir après que tu seras rentré. (I will visit you after you have returned.)

Summary

The futur antérieur tense is used to express completed actions in the future that will occur before another specified future action or event. It’s a crucial tense for describing the chronological order of events in French.

I hope you enjoyed this article on the verb alterner. Still in a learning mood? Check out another TOTALLY random French verb conjugation!

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