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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb carter

Get the Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) tense conjugation of carter. Includes a FREE downloadable reference sheet (no email required). Alternatively if you have a lot of text to check then use our free French Grammar Checker – no registration required!

The English translation of the French verb carter is “to cart” or “to transport.” It is pronounced “kar-teh” in its infinitive form.

The origin of the word carter can be traced back to the Latin word “carrus,” meaning “cart.” In everyday French, carter is most often used in the Plus-que-parfait tense, which expresses an action that was completed before another past action.

Here are 3 simple examples of carter in the Plus-que-parfait tense:

  1. J’avais carté les marchandises avant que le camion n’arrive. (I had carted the goods before the truck arrived.)
  2. Tu avais carté tes affaires pour le voyage. (You had carted your belongings for the trip.)
  3. Ils avaient carté les meubles avant de déménager. (They had carted the furniture before moving.)

In these examples, carter is used to indicate an action that was completed in the past before another action took place. This tense is often used in storytelling or to describe past events in a sequence.

Table of the Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of carter

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
je j’avais carté J’avais carté tous les documents. I had sorted all the documents.
tu tu avais carté Tu avais carté les vêtements sales. You had sorted the dirty clothes.
il il avait carté Il avait carté les dossiers urgents. He had sorted the urgent files.
elle elle avait carté Elle avait carté les livres par auteur. She had sorted the books by author.
on on avait carté On avait carté les cartes postales. One had sorted the postcards.
nous nous avions carté Nous avions carté les photos par date. We had sorted the photos by date.
vous vous aviez carté Vous aviez carté les factures par montant. You had sorted the invoices by amount.
ils ils avaient carté Ils avaient carté les produits par catégorie. They had sorted the products by category.
elles elles avaient carté Elles avaient carté les plantes par espèce. They had sorted the plants by species.

Other Conjugations for Carter.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb carter
   

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

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

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

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

    Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb carter     (this article)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    Struggling with French verbs or the language in general? Why not use our free French Grammar Checker – no registration required!
   

Get a FREE Download Study Sheet of this Conjugation 🔥

Simply right click the image below, click “save image” and get your free reference for the carter Plus-que-parfait tense conjugation!

Carter – About the French Plus-que-parfait (Pluperfect) Tense

The French “plus-que-parfait” tense is a past tense used to express actions or events that occurred before another past action or event. It is often translated to English as the “pluperfect” tense. The name “plus-que-parfait” literally means “more than perfect,” indicating that it is a tense used to describe actions that were completed before a specific point in the past.
NOTE: To take a deep dive into all the French tenses then see my article on Mastering French Tense Conjugation.

Tense Formation

To form the plus-que-parfait tense, you typically use the auxiliary verb “avoir” (to have) or “être” (to be) in the imperfect tense, followed by the past participle of the main verb. Here are the conjugations for both auxiliary verbs:
1. With “avoir” as the auxiliary verb:
   – J’avais mangé (I had eaten)
   – Tu avais parlé (You had spoken)
   – Il/elle/on avait fini (He/She/One had finished)
   – Nous avions lu (We had read)
   – Vous aviez choisi (You had chosen)
   – Ils/elles avaient joué (They had played)
2. With “être” as the auxiliary verb (usually for intransitive verbs or verbs indicating a state):
   – J’étais parti(e) (I had left)
   – Tu étais arrivé(e) (You had arrived)
   – Il/elle/on était tombé(e) (He/She/One had fallen)
   – Nous étions resté(e)s (We had stayed)
   – Vous étiez né(e)(s) (You had been born)
   – Ils/elles étaient monté(e)s (They had gone up)

Common everyday usage patterns

Sequencing of past events

The plus-que-parfait is used to express a past action that happened before another past action. For example, “J’avais mangé avant qu’il ne soit arrivé” (I had eaten before he arrived).

Background information

It is also used to provide background information or set the stage for a main past event. For instance, “Quand je suis arrivé, ils avaient déjà fini de manger” (When I arrived, they had already finished eating).

Hypothetical or reported speech

In indirect speech, the plus-que-parfait is used to report what someone had said or thought in the past. For example, “Il avait dit qu’il viendrait demain” (He had said that he would come tomorrow).

Interactions with other tenses

– The plus-que-parfait is often used in conjunction with the passé composé (simple past) to establish the sequence of past events. The passé composé describes the more recent action, while the plus-que-parfait describes the action that occurred earlier.
– It can also be used with the conditional mood to express a hypothetical past event, like “Si j’avais su, j’aurais agi différemment” (If I had known, I would have acted differently).
– When used in reported speech, it can be combined with the conditional mood or the imperfect subjunctive to reflect the original mood and tense of the reported statement.

Summary

The French plus-que-parfait tense is an essential part of the language for expressing past actions that occurred before other past actions, providing background information, and reporting past statements or thoughts. It is an integral component of constructing complex and accurate narratives in French.

I hope you enjoyed this article on the verb carter. Still in a learning mood? Check out another TOTALLY random French verb conjugation!

Similar Posts