Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb court-circuiter

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The English translation of the French verb court-circuiter is “to short-circuit.” The infinitive form of court-circuiter is pronounced as “koor-seer-kwee-tay.”

The word court-circuiter is a compound verb in French. Its origin comes from the combination of the verb “court” which means “runs” and “circuiter” meaning “to bypass” or “to go around.” Together, court-circuiter refers to the action of bypassing or creating a shortcut in an electrical circuit.

In everyday French, court-circuiter is most often used in the imparfait tense to describe ongoing or repeated actions that happened in the past. It can also express a habitual action or a description of a situation that was taking place in the past.

Here are three simple examples of court-circuiter used in the imparfait tense along with their English translations:

  1. Nous court-circuitions souvent les règles pour gagner du temps.
    (We used to frequently bypass the rules to save time.)

  2. Pendant mon enfance, je court-circuitais les conversations des adultes.
    (During my childhood, I used to interrupt adult conversations.)

  3. Les adolescents court-circuitaient souvent les dispositifs de sécurité.
    (Teenagers would often short-circuit security devices.)

Note: The English translations provided are not literal translations but convey the meaning of the sentences in a natural way.

Table of the Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of court-circuiter

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
je court-circuitais Je court-circuitais l’appareil. I was short-circuiting the device.
tu court-circuitais Tu court-circuitais le système. You were short-circuiting the system.
il court-circuitait Il court-circuitait les fils. He was short-circuiting the wires.
elle court-circuitait Elle court-circuitait l’équipement. She was short-circuiting the equipment.
on court-circuitait On court-circuitait les circuits. We were short-circuiting the circuits.
nous court-circuitions Nous court-circuitions les appareils. We were short-circuiting the devices.
vous court-circuitiez Vous court-circuitiez les connexions. You were short-circuiting the connections.
ils court-circuitaient Ils court-circuitaient les machines. They were short-circuiting the machines.
elles court-circuitaient Elles court-circuitaient les systèmes. They were short-circuiting the systems.

Other Conjugations for Court-Circuiter.

Le Present (Present Tense) Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter (You’re reading it right now!)

Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Passé Composé (Present Perfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Futur Simple (Simple Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Futur Proche (Near Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

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

Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Futur Antérieur (Future Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Subjonctif Présent (Subjunctive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Subjonctif Imparfait (Subjunctive Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

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

Conditionnel Présent (Conditional Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Conditionnel Passé (Conditional Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Conditionnel Passé II (Conditional Past II) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

L’impératif Présent (Imperative Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

L’impératif Passé (Imperative Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

L’infinitif Passé (Infinitive Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Le Participe Présent (Present Participle) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

Le Participe Passé (Past Participle) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb court-circuiter

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Court-Circuiter – About the French Imparfait Tense

The French imparfait tense, often called the imperfect tense in English, is used to describe actions or states in the past. It’s primarily used to provide background information, set the scene, or describe habitual or ongoing actions in the past.

NOTE: To take a deep dive into all the French tenses then see our article on Mastering French Tense Conjugation.

Formation of the Imparfait Tense

To form the imparfait tense in French, you typically take the present tense nous form of the verb, drop the -ons ending, and add specific endings based on the verb group (regular -er, -ir, -re verbs) or use irregular forms for certain verbs.  

For regular -er verbs:

Take the infinitive form (e.g., parler, finir, rendre) Remove the -er ending Add the imparfait endings: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient 

For regular -ir verbs

Take the infinitive form (e.g., choisir, grandir, finir) Remove the -ir ending Add the imparfait endings: -issais, -issais, -issait, -issions, -issiez, -issaient 

For regular -re verbs

Take the infinitive form (e.g., vendre, attendre, entendre) Remove the -re ending Add the imparfait endings: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient

Common Everyday Usage Patterns

Description of Past Habits

The imparfait is often used to describe habitual actions or situations in the past. For example: “Quand j’étais enfant, je jouais au football tous les jours.” (When I was a child, I used to play football every day.) 

Background Information

It’s used to provide background information or set the stage for a main event in the past. For instance: “Il faisait beau ce jour-là.” (The weather was nice that day.) 

Mental and Emotional States

It’s employed to express emotions, thoughts, or physical sensations in the past. For example: “J’étais content quand il est arrivé.” (I was happy when he arrived.) 

Ongoing Actions

The imparfait describes actions that were in progress or happening when something else occurred in the past. For instance: “Je lisais un livre quand le téléphone a sonné.” (I was reading a book when the phone rang.)

Points to Note About the Imparfait Tense

Passé Composé vs. Imparfait

The imparfait and passé composé (a compound past tense) are often used together to express the completion of an action in the past (passé composé) and provide context or background (imparfait). For example: “Il regardait la télévision quand son ami est arrivé.” (He was watching TV when his friend arrived.) 

Conditional

The imparfait is used as the base for forming the conditional mood in French. For instance, “Je mangerais” (I would eat) is formed from “je mangeais” (I was eating). 

Si Clauses

In hypothetical or “if” clauses (si clauses), the imparfait is often used to express a condition in the past. For example: “Si j’avais de l’argent, j’achèterais une nouvelle voiture.” (If I had money, I would buy a new car.) 

Narration

In storytelling or writing, the imparfait is frequently used to set the scene and describe ongoing actions while the passé composé is used for specific events or actions that interrupted the ongoing ones.
Understanding the French imperfect tense is crucial for effective communication in French. Without it, your conversations will always live in the present!

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

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