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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb crêper

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The English translation of the French verb crêper is “to crepe.” It is pronounced “kreh-pay.”

The word crêper comes from the French word “crêpe,” which means “crisp or thin pancake.” It is most often used in everyday French to describe the process of making crêpes, a popular French dish.

In the Passé Antérieur tense, crêper is used to describe an action that was completed in the past before another action in the past. It is formed by using the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être” in the Passé Simple tense followed by the past participle of crêper, which is “crêpé.”

Examples:

  1. J’eus crêpé la pâte avant que mon ami n’arrive. – I had creped the batter before my friend arrived.
  2. Elle fut très fière d’avoir crêpé ses cheveux pour la soirée. – She was very proud to have creped her hair for the party.
  3. Nous sûmes que vous eûtes crêpé les crêpes lorsque nous goûtâmes leur délicieux saveur. – We knew that you had creped the crepes when we tasted their delicious flavor.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
je j’eusse crêpé J’eusse crêpé le tissu I had creased the fabric
tu tu eusses crêpé Tu eusses crêpé le fil You had creased the thread
il il eût crêpé Il eût crêpé les cheveux He had crimped the hair
elle elle eût crêpé Elle eût crêpé la pâte She had crimped the dough
on on eût crêpé On eût crêpé la feuille One had crimped the paper
nous nous eûmes crêpé Nous eûmes crêpé le papier We had crimped the paper
vous vous eûtes crêpé Vous eûtes crêpé le tissu You had crimped the fabric
ils ils eurent crêpé Ils eurent crêpé les cheveux They had crimped the hair
elles elles eurent crêpé Elles eurent crêpé le tissu They had crimped the fabric

Other Conjugations for Crêper.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb crêper
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Crêper – 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 crêper. Still in a learning mood? Check out another TOTALLY random French verb conjugation!

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