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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb dégager

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The English translation of the French verb dégager is “to clear” or “to free up.” It is pronounced as “day-ga-zhay” in its infinitive form.

The word dégager comes from the Old French word “degaier,” meaning “to clear or free from hindrance.” It can also be traced back to the Latin word “dis,” meaning “apart,” and “gagium,” meaning “obstacle.” In everyday French, dégager is most often used in its Passé Antérieur tense, which is the past perfect tense in English. This tense is used to indicate an action that was completed before another past action or event.

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

  1. J’ai dégagé la route avant que la tempête ne frappe. (I had cleared the road before the storm hit.)
  2. Tu as dégagé la table avant que les invités n’arrivent. (You had freed up the table before the guests arrived.)
  3. Elle a dégagé son calendrier pour pouvoir venir à la fête. (She had cleared her schedule to be able to come to the party.)

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

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

Other Conjugations for Dégager.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dégager
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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