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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb désembrayer

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The English translation of the French verb désembrayer is “to disengage.” The infinitive form “désembrayer” is pronounced as “day-sahm-bray-ay.”

Désembrayer originated from the combination of the prefix “dé-” (meaning “un-” or “dis-“) and the verb “embrayer” (meaning “to engage”). It is most commonly used in everyday French to refer to the action of releasing or disconnecting a mechanism or engaging system, such as disengaging the clutch in a car.

In the Passé Simple (Simple Past) tense, désembrayer is not frequently used in everyday French as it belongs to a more formal register. However, three examples of its usage in this tense, along with their English translations, could be:

  1. Je désembrayai le levier de vitesse. (I disengaged the gear lever.)
  2. Il désembraya le système de freinage. (He disengaged the braking system.)
  3. Elle désembraya l’embrayage à temps. (She disengaged the clutch in time.)

Note: The Passé Simple tense is mainly used in written French, particularly in literature, formal writing, or historical contexts. In spoken language, the Passé Composé or other compound tenses are more commonly used to express past actions.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
Je désembrayai J’ai désembrayé la voiture. I disengaged the car.
Tu désembrayas Tu désembrayas trop tard. You disengaged too late.
Il désembraya Il désembraya le frein. He disengaged the brake.
Elle désembraya Elle désembraya la machine. She disengaged the machine.
On désembraya On désembraya le moteur. One disengaged the engine.
Nous désembrayâmes Nous désembrayâmes le train. We disengaged the train.
Vous désembrayâtes Vous désembrayâtes la transmission. You disengaged the transmission.
Ils désembrayèrent Ils désembrayèrent les wagons. They disengaged the wagons.
Elles désembrayèrent Elles désembrayèrent le levier. They (feminine) disengaged the lever.

Other Conjugations for Désembrayer.

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

Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb désembrayer

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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