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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb confier

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The English translation of the French verb confier is “to entrust” or “to confide.” The infinitive form is pronounced as “kon-FYAY.”

The word confier comes from the Latin word “confidere,” meaning “to trust.” It is most often used in everyday French to express the act of entrusting someone with something, or sharing a secret or personal information with someone.

In the Plus-que-parfait tense, confier is used to talk about something that had been entrusted or confided in the past. Here are three examples of its usage in this tense:

  1. J’avais confié mes clés à mon voisin avant de partir en vacances. (I had entrusted my keys to my neighbor before leaving on vacation.)

  2. Elle m’avait confié qu’elle était enceinte avant de l’annoncer à sa famille. (She had confided in me that she was pregnant before announcing it to her family.)

  3. Nous avions confié notre projet à une agence de communication pour en assurer le succès. (We had entrusted our project to a communication agency to ensure its success.)

In all of these examples, the verb confier is used to talk about something that was entrusted or confided in the past, before a certain event or action. The Plus-que-parfait tense emphasizes the completion of the action before another one, and in this case, it highlights the fact that the entrusting or confiding had already taken place before the main event or action.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
je j’avais confié J’avais confié mes clés à mon voisin. I had entrusted my keys to my neighbor.
tu tu avais confié Tu avais confié ton secret à ta meilleure amie. You had confided your secret to your best friend.
il il avait confié Il avait confié sa mission à son collègue. He had entrusted his mission to his colleague.
elle elle avait confié Elle avait confié ses craintes à sa mère. She had confided her fears to her mother.
on on avait confié On avait confié le projet à une équipe d’experts. One had entrusted the project to a team of experts.
nous nous avions confié Nous avions confié notre secret à nos amis. We had confided our secret to our friends.
vous vous aviez confié Vous aviez confié votre voiture à votre frère. You had entrusted your car to your brother.
ils ils avaient confié Ils avaient confié leur confiance à leur avocat. They had entrusted their trust to their lawyer.
elles elles avaient confié Elles avaient confié leur projet à une équipe de spécialistes. They had entrusted their project to a team of specialists.

Other Conjugations for Confier.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb confier
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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