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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb décompter

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The English translation of décompter is “to subtract” or “to deduct.” The infinitive form is pronounced as “day-come-tay.”

The word décompter is derived from the prefix “dé-” which means “to remove” or “to undo,” and the verb “compter” which means “to count.” In everyday French, décompter is most often used in the Plus-que-parfait tense, which is the past perfect tense. This tense is used to describe an action that was completed before another action in the past.

Examples in Plus-que-parfait tense:

  1. J’avais décompté les heures travaillées avant d’aller en vacances. (I had subtracted the hours worked before going on vacation.)
  2. Ils avaient décompté les points avant que le match ne se termine. (They had deducted the points before the match ended.)
  3. Elle avait décompté les ingrédients nécessaires avant de commencer la recette. (She had counted the necessary ingredients before starting the recipe.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
je j’avais décompté J’avais décompté les jours. I had counted down the days.
tu tu avais décompté Tu avais décompté les heures. You had counted down the hours.
il il avait décompté Il avait décompté les minutes. He had counted down the minutes.
elle elle avait décompté Elle avait décompté les secondes. She had counted down the seconds.
on on avait décompté On avait décompté les années. One had counted down the years.
nous nous avions décompté Nous avions décompté les décennies. We had counted down the decades.
vous vous aviez décompté Vous aviez décompté les siècles. You had counted down the centuries.
ils ils avaient décompté Ils avaient décompté les millénaires. They had counted down the millennia.
elles elles avaient décompté Elles avaient décompté les éons. They had counted down the eons.

Other Conjugations for Décompter.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb décompter
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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