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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb covoiturer

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The English translation of the French verb “covoiturer” is “to carpool.” The infinitive form of “covoiturer” is pronounced as “koh-vwah-tuh-ray.”

The word “covoiturer” is derived from the combination of “co” (meaning “together”) and “voiture” (meaning “car”). It is most often used in everyday French to describe the action of sharing a car ride with others.

In the Passé Simple (Simple Past) tense, “covoiturer” is less commonly used in everyday language and is usually replaced by the more common past tenses like the Passé Composé or Imparfait. However, if we were to use “covoiturer” in the Passé Simple tense, it would follow the regular conjugation pattern for -er verbs. Here are three examples:

  1. Hier, nous covoiturâmes pour aller au travail. (Yesterday, we carpooled to go to work.)
  2. Il covoitura avec ses collègues pour se rendre à la réunion. (He carpooled with his colleagues to attend the meeting.)
  3. Pendant les vacances, elles covoiturèrent vers la plage tous les jours. (During the holidays, they carpooled to the beach every day.)

Please note that although these examples are given in the Passé Simple tense, it is more common to use other past tenses like the Passé Composé or Imparfait in everyday speech.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
Je covoiturai Je covoiturai avec mes collègues. I carpoolled with my colleagues.
Tu covoituras Tu covoituras pour aller au travail. You carpoolled to go to work.
Il covoitura Il covoitura ses voisins. He carpoolled with his neighbors.
Elle covoitura Elle covoitura ses amis. She carpoolled with her friends.
On covoitura On covoitura ensemble. One carpoolled together.
Nous covoiturâmes Nous covoiturâmes pour économiser de l’essence. We carpoolled to save on gas.
Vous covoiturâtes Vous covoiturâtes pour réduire la pollution. You carpoolled to reduce pollution.
Ils covoiturèrent Ils covoiturèrent pour protéger l’environnement. They carpoolled to protect the environment.
Elles covoiturèrent Elles covoiturèrent pour partager les frais. They (feminine) carpoolled to share expenses.

Other Conjugations for Covoiturer.

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

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb covoiturer

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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