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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb déficher

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The English translation of the French verb “déficher” is “to remove from a file.” The infinitive form, “déficher,” is pronounced as “day-fee-shay.”

The verb “déficher” comes from the combination of the prefix “dé-” (which indicates removal) and the word “fiche” (meaning “file” or “index card”). In everyday French, it is most often used in the Passé Simple (Simple Past) tense to describe actions that occurred in the past and are complete.

Three examples of “déficher” in the Passé Simple tense and their English translations are:

  1. Je défichai mon nom de la liste des membres.
    (I removed my name from the members’ list.)

  2. Il déficha le document du dossier.
    (He removed the document from the file.)

  3. Elle déficha tous les anciens employés de la base de données.
    (She removed all the former employees from the database.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
Je défichai J’ai défichai le document. I erased the document.
Tu défichas Tu défichas le fichier. You erased the file.
Il déficha Il déficha le dossier. He erased the folder.
Elle déficha Elle déficha les données. She erased the data.
On déficha On déficha les informations. One erased the information.
Nous défichâmes Nous défichâmes les images. We erased the images.
Vous défichâtes Vous défichâtes le texte. You erased the text.
Ils défichèrent Ils défichèrent les enregistrements. They erased the records.
Elles défichèrent Elles défichèrent les contacts. They (feminine) erased the contacts.

Other Conjugations for Déficher.

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

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb déficher

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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