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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb chlorer

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The English translation of the French verb chlorer is “to chlorinate.” It is pronounced “klo-ray.”

The word chlorer comes from the Greek word “chloros,” meaning greenish-yellow, and the French suffix “-er,” which is commonly used to form verbs. It is most often used in everyday French to describe the process of adding chlorine to water or other substances to disinfect or sanitize them.

In the Passé Antérieur tense, which is the literary equivalent of the past perfect tense, chlorer is used to express an action that was completed before another past action. It is formed by conjugating the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être” in the passé simple tense, followed by the past participle of chlorer.

Here are three simple examples of chlorer in the Passé Antérieur tense, with their English translations:

  1. J’eus chloré l’eau avant de la boire. (I had chlorinated the water before drinking it.)
  2. Tu eus chloré la piscine avant de nager. (You had chlorinated the pool before swimming.)
  3. Ils eurent chloré le sol avant de planter les légumes. (They had chlorinated the soil before planting the vegetables.)

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

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

Other Conjugations for Chlorer.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb chlorer
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Chlorer – 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.

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

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