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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb bostonner

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The English translation of the French verb bostonner is “to play Boston” or “to play a game of Boston.” It is pronounced as “bo-ston-ay” in its infinitive form.

The word bostonner comes from the game of Boston, which was a popular card game in France during the 18th and 19th centuries. It is believed to have originated in England and was introduced to France by the Duke of Brissac.

In modern French, bostonner is most often used in the Passé Antérieur tense, which is the past perfect tense in English. This tense is used to talk about an action that was completed before another action in the past.

Here are three simple examples of bostonner used in the Passé Antérieur tense:

  1. Nous avions bostonné avant le dîner. (We had played Boston before dinner.)

  2. Elle avait bostonné avec ses amis pendant des heures. (She had played Boston with her friends for hours.)

  3. Ils avaient bostonné lors de leur dernier voyage à Paris. (They had played Boston during their last trip to Paris.)

In all of these examples, the action of playing Boston (bostonner) was completed before another action in the past (dinner, spending time with friends, and a trip to Paris).

Table of the Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) Tense Conjugation of bostonner

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
je j’eusse J’eusse bostonné I had bostonned
tu tu eusses Tu eusses bostonné You had bostonned
il il eût Il eût bostonné He had bostonned
elle elle eût Elle eût bostonné She had bostonned
on on eût On eût bostonné One had bostonned
nous nous eûmes Nous eûmes bostonné We had bostonned
vous vous eûtes Vous eûtes bostonné You had bostonned
ils ils eurent Ils eurent bostonné They had bostonned
elles elles eurent Elles eurent bostonné They had bostonned

Other Conjugations for Bostonner.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb bostonner
   

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

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

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

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

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

    Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb bostonner (this article)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Bostonner – About the French Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) Tense

The French Passé Antérieur tense, often referred to as the “past anterior” in English, is a literary and formal past tense that is not commonly used in everyday spoken French. It is primarily found in written language, particularly in literature, historical texts, and formal writing. This tense is used to express actions that occurred before another action in the past, serving a similar purpose to the past perfect tense (passé composé) in English.

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

Formation of the Passé Antérieur

The Passé Antérieur is formed by using the third person singular of the passé simple (simple past) tense of the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être,” followed by the past participle of the main verb. 
The choice between “avoir” and “être” as the auxiliary verb depends on the main verb and its transitivity or intransitivity. Here is the basic structure:
1. For verbs that use “avoir” as the auxiliary verb:
   – J’eus (I had) + past participle (of the main verb)
2. For verbs that use “être” as the auxiliary verb:
   – Je fus (I was) + past participle (of the main verb)

Common Usage Patterns

As mentioned earlier, the Passé Antérieur is primarily used in formal and literary contexts. It is rarely used in everyday spoken French, where the passé composé and imparfait are more commonly used to express past actions. Some common patterns of usage include:

Literature

The Passé Antérieur is frequently used in literature to describe past events in a succinct and formal manner.

Historical Texts

It is used in historical narratives to recount past actions and events.

Formal Writing

In formal and academic writing, the Passé Antérieur can be employed to convey events in the past with a sense of formality and precision.

Interactions with Other Tenses

The Passé Antérieur often interacts with other tenses, especially when narrating past events in a chronological order:

Passé Composé (Present Perfect)

The Passé Antérieur can be used to indicate an action that occurred before another action expressed in the passé composé. For example: “Il eut terminé son travail avant que je ne sois arrivé.” (He had finished his work before I arrived).

Imparfait (Imperfect)

The Passé Antérieur may be used in conjunction with the imparfait to convey a sequence of past actions. For instance: “Elle arriva après que nous eûmes commencé.” (She arrived after we had started).

Futur Antérieur (Future Perfect)

In the context of storytelling or narration, the Passé Antérieur can be used to describe events that happened before a future action expressed in the futur antérieur. For example: “Il partira après qu’il aura fini.” (He will leave after he has finished).

Summary

Passé Antérieur is a formal past tense used in written language and literary contexts to describe actions that occurred before another action in the past. It is not commonly used in everyday spoken French where you should instead use the passé composé and imparfait for discussing past events.

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