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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb entraider

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The English translation of the French verb entraider is “to help each other” or “to assist one another.” The infinitive form is pronounced as ahn-tray-der.

Entraider comes from the combination of the prefix “en-” (meaning “in”) and the verb “aider” (meaning “to help”). It is a reflexive verb, meaning that the action is done to oneself and another person at the same time.

In everyday French, entraider is most often used in the Plus-que-parfait tense, which is the past tense used to indicate an action that happened before another past action. It is formed by using the auxiliary verb “avoir” conjugated in the imparfait tense followed by the past participle of entraider, which is “entraidé.”

Here are three simple examples of how entraider is used in the Plus-que-parfait tense:

  1. Nous nous étions entraidés pour terminer le projet à temps. (We had helped each other to finish the project on time.)
  2. Elles s’étaient entraidées pour organiser la fête surprise. (They had assisted each other in organizing the surprise party.)
  3. J’avais rencontré un groupe de personnes qui s’étaient entraidées pour survivre dans la forêt. (I had met a group of people who had helped each other to survive in the forest.)

In each of these examples, the action of helping or assisting occurred before the other past action mentioned in the sentence. This tense is commonly used when telling stories or retelling events that happened in the past.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
je j’avais entraide J’avais entraidé mon frère. I had helped my brother.
tu tu avais entraidé Tu avais entraidé ta soeur. You had helped your sister.
il il avait entraidé Il avait entraidé son ami. He had helped his friend.
elle elle avait entraidé Elle avait entraidé sa cousine. She had helped her cousin.
on on avait entraidé On avait entraidé nos voisins. One had helped our neighbors.
nous nous avions entraidé Nous avions entraidé nos amis. We had helped our friends.
vous vous aviez entraidé Vous aviez entraidé vos collègues. You had helped your colleagues.
ils ils avaient entraidé Ils avaient entraidé leurs voisins. They had helped their neighbors.
elles elles avaient entraidé Elles avaient entraidé leurs amis. They had helped their friends.

Other Conjugations for Entraider.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb entraider
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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