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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb décruer

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The English translation of the French verb décruer is “to decrease” or “to reduce.” The pronunciation of the infinitive form, décruer, is [de-kʁye].

The verb décruer originates from the Old French verb “decreistre” which means “to decrease.” It is derived from the Latin word “decrescere” which has the same meaning. In everyday French, décruer is most commonly used in the Passé Simple tense, which is the literary or formal past tense.

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

  1. Le nombre d’étudiants décrua de moitié l’année dernière.
    (The number of students decreased by half last year.)

  2. La production de l’usine décrua progressivement au fil des années.
    (The factory’s production decreased gradually over the years.)

  3. Les bénéfices de l’entreprise décruèrent considérablement en 2020.
    (The company’s profits decreased significantly in 2020.)

Please note that the Passé Simple tense is mainly used in formal writing, literature, or historical contexts in modern French. In spoken French, the Passé Composé tense is generally preferred to express past actions.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
Je décruai Je décruai dans l’organisation. I decreased in the organization.
Tu décruas Tu décruas sa confiance. You decreased his trust.
Il décrua Il décrua ses dépenses. He decreased his expenses.
Elle décrua Elle décrua sa participation. She decreased her participation.
On décrua On décrua son influence. One decreased his influence.
Nous décruâmes Nous décruâmes les stocks. We decreased the stocks.
Vous décruâtes Vous décruâtes votre vitesse. You decreased your speed.
Ils décruèrent Ils décruèrent leur production. They decreased their production.
Elles décruèrent Elles décruèrent leur budget. They (feminine) decreased their budget.

Other Conjugations for Décruer.

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

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb décruer

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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