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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb contourner

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The English translation of the French verb contourner is “to bypass” or “to go around.” The infinitive form, contourner, is pronounced as “kawn-toor-nay.”

The word contourner comes from the Latin word “contornare,” meaning “to turn around.” In everyday French, it is most often used in the L’infinitif Présent tense, which is the simple form of the verb that does not indicate any specific subject or time.

Examples of its usage in this tense are:

  1. Je dois contourner les bouchons pour arriver à l’heure. (I have to bypass the traffic to arrive on time.)
  2. Nous devons contourner les règles pour réussir. (We have to go around the rules to succeed.)
  3. Elle contourne toujours les problèmes au lieu de les affronter. (She always avoids problems instead of facing them.)

In these examples, contourner is used to express the idea of avoiding something or finding an alternate route.

Table of the L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of contourner

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je contourne Je contourne le problème. I get around the problem.
tu contournes Tu contournes les règles. You bypass the rules.
il contourne Il contourne la loi. He skirts the law.
elle contourne Elle contourne le sujet. She avoids the topic.
on contourne On contourne l’obstacle. We get around the obstacle.
nous contournons Nous contournons la ville. We bypass the city.
vous contournez Vous contournez le problème. You get around the problem.
ils contournent Ils contournent les lois. They skirt the laws.
elles contournent Elles contournent le danger. They avoid the danger.

Other Conjugations for Contourner.

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

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contourner

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contourner  (this article)

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Contourner – About the French L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense

BEFORE you continue…. why not take a deep dive into all the French tenses with my article on Mastering French Tense Conjugation.
The French “l’infinitif présent” (Infinitive Present) tense is not a true verb tense in the same way that the present, past, or future tenses are. Instead, it’s the base form of a verb, and it has several important uses and interactions with other tenses.

Forming the Infinitive Present

To form the infinitive present of a verb, you typically take the unconjugated form of the verb (the form you’d find in a French dictionary) and remove the ending. For regular verbs, you remove the -er, -ir, or -re ending, and you’re left with the infinitive. For example:
   – Parler (to speak)
   – Finir (to finish)
   – Vendre (to sell)

Common Everyday Usage Patterns

As a Verb’s Dictionary Form

The most common use of the infinitive present is to represent a verb in its base form. It’s the form you would find in a dictionary or verb conjugation table.

After Modal Verbs

When you use modal verbs like “pouvoir” (can), “vouloir” (want), or “devoir” (must), the verb that follows is in its infinitive form. For example:
     – Je veux manger. (I want to eat.)
     – Il peut parler français. (He can speak French.)

As an Imperative

In informal commands, the infinitive is often used. For example:
     – Ferme la porte. (Close the door.)

In Infinitive Clauses

In complex sentences, especially after certain conjunctions, the infinitive is used to express actions that are separate from the main verb. For example:
     – J’ai besoin de manger avant de partir. (I need to eat before leaving.)

Interactions with Other Tenses

Present Tense

The infinitive present can be used with the present tense to express ongoing actions or habitual actions. For example:
     – J’aime manger des croissants. (I like eating croissants.)

Future Tense

When combined with the future tense of “aller,” the infinitive present can express future actions. For example:
     – Je vais manger au restaurant demain. (I am going to eat at the restaurant tomorrow.)

Conditional Tense

The infinitive present is often used with the conditional to express actions that would happen in a hypothetical situation. For example:

     – Il mangerait s’il avait faim. (He would eat if he were hungry.)

Passé Composé

When forming compound tenses like “passé composé,” the auxiliary verb (être or avoir) is conjugated, and the main verb remains in its infinitive form. For example:
     – J’ai mangé une pomme. (I ate an apple.)
     – Elle est partie. (She left.)

Imperfect Tense

The infinitive present can be combined with the imperfect tense to describe ongoing or habitual actions in the past. For example:
     – Quand j’étais enfant, j’aimais jouer. (When I was a child, I liked to play.)

Subjunctive and Conditional Moods

In some complex sentences, the infinitive can be used with the subjunctive and conditional moods, especially when expressing uncertainty, possibility, or doubt.

Summary

The infinitive present in French serves as the base form of a verb and is used in various contexts, including after modal verbs, in imperative commands, in infinitive clauses, and in combination with other tenses to convey a wide range of meanings and actions. Its flexibility makes it a fundamental part of French grammar.

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