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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb démener

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The English translation of the French verb démener is “to struggle” or “to fight”. The infinitive form of démener is pronounced as “day-meh-nay”.

The word démener comes from the Old French word “demener” which meant “to lead” or “to drive”. It can also be traced back to the Latin word “dēmināre” which meant “to set in motion” or “to stir up”. In modern-day French, démener is most often used in the Plus-que-parfait tense, which is the past tense that expresses an action that happened before another past action.

Here are three simple examples of its usage in the Plus-que-parfait tense with their respective English translations:

  1. Il s’était déméné toute la nuit avant de réussir son examen. (He had struggled all night before passing his exam.)

  2. Nous nous étions déménés pour trouver un nouvel appartement. (We had fought to find a new apartment.)

  3. Les ouvriers s’étaient déménés pour terminer le chantier à temps. (The workers had worked hard to finish the construction on time.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
je je m’étais démené(e) Je m’étais démené(e) pour arranger la situation. I had struggled to fix the situation.
tu tu t’étais démené(e) Tu t’étais démené(e) pour obtenir une réponse. You had fought to get an answer.
il il s’était démené Il s’était démené pour trouver une solution. He had worked hard to find a solution.
elle elle s’était démenée Elle s’était démenée pour gagner la course. She had exerted herself to win the race.
on on s’était démené On s’était démené pour organiser une fête surprise. One had gone through a lot of effort to organize a surprise party.
nous nous nous étions démenés Nous nous étions démenés pour réussir le projet. We had put in a lot of effort to succeed in the project.
vous vous vous étiez démenés Vous vous étiez démenés pour nous aider. You had gone out of your way to help us.
ils ils s’étaient démenés Ils s’étaient démenés pour atteindre le sommet de la montagne. They had struggled to reach the top of the mountain.
elles elles s’étaient démenées Elles s’étaient démenées pour obtenir des bonnes notes. They had worked hard to get good grades.

Other Conjugations for Démener.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb démener
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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