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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb dilater

Get the Passé Antérieur (Past Anterior) tense conjugation of dilater. 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 dilater is “to dilate.” It is pronounced as “dee-la-tay.”

The word dilater comes from the Latin word “dilatare,” which means “to spread out” or “to enlarge.” It is most often used in French to describe the physical action of expanding or widening, but it can also be used figuratively to express the idea of extending or lengthening something.

In the Passé Antérieur tense, dilater is used to describe a completed action in the past that happened before another action. It is formed by conjugating the auxiliary verb “avoir” in the passé simple tense, followed by the past participle of dilater, which is “dilaté.”

Here are three simple examples of how dilater is used in the Passé Antérieur tense:

  1. J’avais dilaté mes pupilles avant de regarder le film. (I had dilated my pupils before watching the movie.)
  2. Tu avais dilaté les pores de ta peau avec de la vapeur. (You had dilated your skin pores with steam.)
  3. Elle avait dilaté son temps de réponse pour avoir plus de temps de réflexion. (She had extended her response time to have more time to think.)

In these examples, the action of dilater had already been completed before another action took place. The usage of the Passé Antérieur tense gives a sense of a precise and definite past action.

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

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

Other Conjugations for Dilater.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dilater
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    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 dilater Passé Antérieur tense conjugation!

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

Similar Posts