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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb décimer

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The English translation of the French verb décimer is “to decimate.” The infinitive form, décimer, is pronounced as “day-see-may.”

The word décimer comes from the Latin word “decimare,” which means “to take a tenth.” In ancient Rome, it referred to the practice of killing every tenth soldier as a form of punishment or as a means of reducing the size of a military unit. Over time, the meaning of décimer has evolved, and it now generally refers to the act of eliminating, destroying, or drastically reducing a large portion of something.

In everyday French, the Passé Simple tense is rarely used in spoken language and is mainly reserved for formal writing or literature. However, when it is employed, décimer is conjugated as follows in the Passé Simple tense:

  • Je décimai (I decimated)
  • Tu décimas (You decimated)
  • Il/elle/on décima (He/she/one decimated)
  • Nous décimâmes (We decimated)
  • Vous décimâtes (You decimated)
  • Ils/elles décimèrent (They decimated)

Here are three examples of décimer used in the Passé Simple tense, along with their English translations:

  1. Les ennemis décimèrent les troupes ennemies lors de la bataille.
    (The enemies decimated the enemy troops during the battle.)

  2. L’épidémie a décimé une grande partie de la population.
    (The epidemic decimated a large part of the population.)

  3. La sécheresse a décimé les récoltes cette année-là.
    (The drought decimated the crops that year.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
Je décimai J’ai décimé l’ennemi. I decimated the enemy.
Tu décimas Tu décimas la population. You decimated the population.
Il décima Il décima le régiment. He decimated the regiment.
Elle décima Elle décima la forêt. She decimated the forest.
On décima On décima le troupeau. One decimated the herd.
Nous décimâmes Nous décimâmes l’équipe. We decimated the team.
Vous décimâtes Vous décimâtes les ressources. You decimated the resources.
Ils décimèrent Ils décimèrent la ville. They decimated the city.
Elles décimèrent Elles décimèrent la population. They (feminine) decimated the population.

Other Conjugations for Décimer.

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

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb décimer

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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