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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb décourager

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The English translation of the French verb “décourager” is “to discourage.” The infinitive form “décourager” is pronounced as “day-koo-ra-zhay.”

The verb “décourager” comes from the combination of the prefix “dé-” (which denotes negation or reversal) and the verb “encourager” (to encourage). It is commonly used in everyday French to express the act of disheartening, demotivating, or discouraging someone.

In the Passé Simple tense (Simple Past), which is less frequently used in spoken French than in written or formal contexts, “décourager” is conjugated as follows:

  • J’ai découragé (I discouraged)
  • Tu décourageas (You discouraged)
  • Il/Elle découragea (He/She discouraged)
  • Nous décourageâmes (We discouraged)
  • Vous décourageâtes (You discouraged)
  • Ils/Elles découragèrent (They discouraged)

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

  1. J’ai découragé mes amis lorsqu’ils ont appris la nouvelle.
    (I discouraged my friends when they heard the news.)

  2. Tu décourageas ton frère en lui disant qu’il n’y arriverait jamais.
    (You discouraged your brother by telling him he would never succeed.)

  3. Les mauvaises critiques découragèrent les artistes, mais ils continuèrent à se battre.
    (The bad reviews discouraged the artists, but they kept fighting.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
Je décourageai Je décourageai mes adversaires. I discouraged my opponents.
Tu décourageas Tu décourageas ton ami. You discouraged your friend.
Il découragea Il découragea l’équipe adverse. He discouraged the opposing team.
Elle découragea Elle découragea son frère. She discouraged her brother.
On découragea On découragea les candidats. One discouraged the candidates.
Nous décourageâmes Nous décourageâmes nos concurrents. We discouraged our competitors.
Vous décourageâtes Vous décourageâtes les étudiants. You discouraged the students.
Ils découragèrent Ils découragèrent les manifestants. They discouraged the protesters.
Elles découragèrent Elles découragèrent les volontaires. They (feminine) discouraged the volunteers.

Other Conjugations for Décourager.

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

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb décourager

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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