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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb annoter

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The English translation of the French verb “annoter” is “to annotate.” The infinitive form “annoter” is pronounced as [a.no.te].

The verb “annoter” comes from the Latin word “annotare,” which means “to annotate” or “to note down.” In everyday French, this verb is commonly used to refer to the action of adding notes or comments to a text, document, or any other written material. It is often used in academic or professional contexts.

In the Passé Simple (Simple Past) tense, “annoter” is less commonly used in everyday spoken French and is usually reserved for formal writing, literature, or historical contexts. Here are three examples of its usage in the Simple Past tense, along with their English translations:

  1. J’annotai le livre avec mes réflexions personnelles.
    (I annotated the book with my personal reflections.)

  2. Il annota les articles de journal pour sa recherche.
    (He annotated the newspaper articles for his research.)

  3. Elle annota toutes les références bibliographiques dans son mémoire.
    (She annotated all the bibliographic references in her thesis.)

Note: While the Passé Simple tense is used in literature and formal writing, in spoken French, the compound past tense (Passé composé) is more commonly used to express past actions.

Table of the Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense Conjugation of annoter

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
Je annotai J’annotai le livre. I annotated the book.
Tu annotas Tu annotas la page. You annotated the page.
Il annota Il annota ses notes. He annotated his notes.
Elle annota Elle annota le document. She annotated the document.
On annota On annota le texte. One annotated the text.
Nous annotâmes Nous annotâmes le dossier. We annotated the file.
Vous annotâtes Vous annotâtes le rapport. You annotated the report.
Ils annotèrent Ils annotèrent les images. They annotated the images.
Elles annotèrent Elles annotèrent les cartes. They (feminine) annotated the maps.

Other Conjugations for Annoter.

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

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb annoter

Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb annoter (You’re reading it right now!)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

L’impératif Passé (Imperative Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb annoter

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

L’infinitif Passé (Infinitive Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb annoter

Le Participe Présent (Present Participle) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb annoter

Le Participe Passé (Past Participle) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb annoter

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Annoter – About the French Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense

The French Passé Simple, also known as the Simple Past or Preterite, is a past tense used in written French to describe completed actions that took place at a specific point in the past.
It is not commonly used in everyday spoken language, where the Passé Composé is the preferred past tense. The Passé Simple is mainly found in literature, formal writing, and historical contexts. It has a somewhat limited use in modern French, and its conjugation can be complex.  
NOTE: To take a deep dive into all the French tenses then see our article on Mastering French Tense Conjugation.

Formation

The Passé Simple is formed by conjugating the verb according to its specific endings for regular and irregular verbs. The endings typically vary based on the verb group (i.e., -er, -ir, or -re). For example:
   – For regular -er verbs (e.g., manger, parler): Remove the -er ending and add appropriate endings, like -ai, -as, -a, -âmes, -âtes, -èrent.
   – For regular -ir verbs (e.g., finir, choisir): Remove the -ir ending and add endings like -is, -is, -it, -îmes, -îtes, -irent.
   – For regular -re verbs (e.g., vendre, attendre): Remove the -re ending and add endings like -is, -is, -it, -îmes, -îtes, -irent.

Usage

Narration

The Passé Simple is commonly used in literature to describe past events in a narrative or storytelling context.

Historical Context

It can be used in historical writing or documents to discuss events that took place in the past.
Formal Writing
In formal or academic writing, especially in essays or reports, you might encounter the Passé Simple.

Interactions with other tenses

Passé Composé

In everyday spoken French, the Passé Composé is the go-to tense for describing completed actions in the past. The Passé Simple is not commonly used in spoken language and is often replaced by the Passé Composé.

Imparfait

While the Passé Simple focuses on completed actions in the past, the Imparfait is used to describe ongoing or habitual actions in the past. They can sometimes be used together to provide a more detailed past narrative. For example, “Il lisait un livre quand il reçut un appel.” (He was reading a book when he received a call).

Conditional and Subjunctive

The Passé Simple can also be found in the conditional and subjunctive moods in formal writing. For instance, “Il faudrait qu’il partît” (He should leave, subjunctive).

Summary

The French Passé Simple is primarily used in formal or literary contexts, and its conjugation can be quite complex. In everyday spoken French, the Passé Composé is the preferred past tense for describing completed actions.

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