Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb démarquer

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb démarquer

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The English translation of the French verb démarquer is “to mark down” or “to reduce the price.” The infinitive form démarquer is pronounced as “day-mar-kay.”

Démarquer comes from the French word “marque” meaning “mark” or “brand,” with the prefix “dé-” indicating the opposite or reversal of the action. It is most often used in everyday French when talking about sales or discounts, referring to the act of marking down prices or reducing the cost of an item.

Examples of démarquer in the imparfait tense:

  1. Chaque été, ils démarquaient les vêtements pour attirer les clients. (Every summer, they would mark down the clothes to attract customers.)

  2. Nous démarquions les prix pendant les soldes. (We would reduce the prices during the sales.)

  3. Quand j’étais enfant, ma mère démarquait toujours les jouets après Noël. (When I was a child, my mother would always mark down the toys after Christmas.)

Table of the Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of démarquer

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
je démarquais Je me démarquais des autres. I was standing out from the others.
tu démarquais Tu te démarquais par ton talent. You were standing out with your talent.
il démarquait Il se démarquait du groupe. He was standing out from the group.
elle démarquait Elle se démarquait par sa créativité. She was standing out with her creativity.
on démarquait On se démarquait des autres étudiants. We were standing out from the other students.
nous démarquions Nous nous démarquions de nos concurrents. We were standing out from our competitors.
vous démarquiez Vous vous démarquiez par votre style unique. You were standing out with your unique style.
ils démarquaient Ils se démarquaient grâce à leur performance. They were standing out with their performance.
elles démarquaient Elles se démarquaient des autres équipes. They were standing out from the other teams.

Other Conjugations for Démarquer.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

L’impératif Passé (Imperative Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb démarquer

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

L’infinitif Passé (Infinitive Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb démarquer

Le Participe Présent (Present Participle) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb démarquer

Le Participe Passé (Past Participle) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb démarquer

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Démarquer – 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 démarquer. Still in a learning mood? Check out another TOTALLY random French verb imparfait conjugation!

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