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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb desserrer

Get the Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) tense conjugation of desserrer. Includes a FREE downloadable reference sheet (no email required). Alternatively if you have a lot of text to check then use our free French Grammar Checker – no registration required!

The English translation of the French verb desserrer is “to loosen” or “to release.” The infinitive form of desserrer is pronounced “day-sair-say.”

Language Origin:
Desserrer comes from the combination of the prefix “dé-” which means “un-” or “dis-” and the verb “serrer” which means “to tighten” or “to squeeze.” It is derived from the Latin word “serrāre” meaning “to close” or “to lock.”

Usage in Passé Antérieur tense:
Desserrer is most commonly used in the Passé Antérieur tense in spoken and written French to indicate an action that was completed before another past action. It is formed by conjugating the auxiliary verb “avoir” in the Passé Simple tense and adding the past participle of desserrer, which is “desserré.”

Examples:

  1. J’eus desserré mon écharpe avant de rentrer chez moi. (I had loosened my scarf before going back home.)
  2. Tu eus desserré tes chaussures après une longue journée de travail. (You had taken off your shoes after a long day at work.)
  3. Il eut desserré son étreinte quand il a vu qu’elle se sentait mal à l’aise. (He had released his grip when he saw that she was feeling uncomfortable.)

English translations:

  1. Elle avait desserré son nœud de cravate avant de partir au travail. (She had loosened her tie knot before heading to work.)
  2. Nous avions desserré les boulons pour démonter le meuble. (We had loosened the bolts to dismantle the furniture.)
  3. Vous aviez desserré les freins avant de descendre la pente en ski. (You had released the brakes before going down the slope skiing.)

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

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

Other Conjugations for Desserrer.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb desserrer
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Get a FREE Download Study Sheet of this Conjugation 🔥

Simply right click the image below, click “save image” and get your free reference for the desserrer Passé Antérieur tense conjugation!

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

Similar Posts