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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb contreficher

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The English translation of the French verb “contreficher” is “to not care” or “to be indifferent.” The pronunciation of the infinitive form “contreficher” is kawn-truh-feesh-ey.

The language origin of “contreficher” is derived from the combination of the verb “ficher” (meaning “to care” or “to bother”) and the prefix “contre-” (meaning “against” or “not”). It is commonly used in everyday French to express a lack of interest or indifference towards something or someone.

Here are three examples of “contreficher” in the Passé Simple tense, along with their English translations:

  1. Je me contrefichai de ses paroles. (I didn’t care about his/her words.)
  2. Nous nous contrefichâmes de cette nouvelle. (We were indifferent about this news.)
  3. Ils se contrefichèrent des règles établies. (They didn’t care about the established rules.)

Please note that the Passé Simple tense is primarily used in formal or literary writing in contemporary French. In spoken and informal French, the compound past tense (Passé Composé) is more commonly used.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
Je contrefichai Je contrefichai de ce qu’il disait. I didn’t care about what he was saying.
Tu contrefichas Tu contrefichas de ses conseils. You didn’t care about his advice.
Il contreficha Il contreficha les règles. He didn’t care about the rules.
Elle contreficha Elle contreficha les critiques. She didn’t care about the criticism.
On contreficha On contreficha de l’opinion publique. One didn’t care about public opinion.
Nous contrefichâmes Nous contrefichâmes de leurs avertissements. We didn’t care about their warnings.
Vous contrefichâtes Vous contrefichâtes de l’heure. You didn’t care about the time.
Ils contrefichèrent Ils contrefichèrent des conséquences. They didn’t care about the consequences.
Elles contrefichèrent Elles contrefichèrent de la situation. They (feminine) didn’t care about the situation.

Other Conjugations for Contreficher.

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

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contreficher

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Contreficher – 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.

I hope you enjoyed this article on the verb contreficher. Still in a learning mood? Check out another TOTALLY random French verb conjugation!

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