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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb guillemeter

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The English translation of the French verb guillemeter is “to put inside quotation marks.” It is pronounced as “gee-yuh-meh-tay.”

The word guillemeter comes from the noun guillemet, which refers to the angled quotation marks used in French (« »). The verb guillemeter is most often used in the Plus-que-parfait tense, which is the past perfect tense in English. This tense is used to describe an action that was completed before another past action.

Here are three simple examples of guillemeter in the Plus-que-parfait tense:

  1. J’avais déjà guillemeté les titres des articles avant de les publier. (I had already put quotation marks around the article titles before publishing them.)

  2. Il avait guillemeté les mots qu’il avait empruntés à son professeur. (He had put quotation marks around the words he had borrowed from his teacher.)

  3. Nous avions guillemeté les paroles de la chanson pour montrer qu’elles n’étaient pas les nôtres. (We had put quotation marks around the lyrics of the song to show that they were not ours.)

In each of these examples, the verb guillemeter is used to indicate that something was put inside quotation marks before a past action took place.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Short Example English Translation
je j’avais guillemeté J’avais guillemeté mes citations. I had put quotation marks around my quotes.
tu tu avais guillemeté Tu avais guillemeté tes répliques. You had put quotation marks around your lines.
il il avait guillemeté Il avait guillemeté le passage. He had put quotation marks around the passage.
elle elle avait guillemeté Elle avait guillemeté la phrase. She had put quotation marks around the sentence.
on on avait guillemeté On avait guillemeté le dialogue. One had put quotation marks around the dialogue.
nous nous avions guillemeté Nous avions guillemeté la citation. We had put quotation marks around the quote.
vous vous aviez guillemeté Vous aviez guillemeté le texte. You had put quotation marks around the text.
ils ils avaient guillemeté Ils avaient guillemeté le discours. They had put quotation marks around the speech.
elles elles avaient guillemeté Elles avaient guillemeté la phrase. They had put quotation marks around the sentence.

Other Conjugations for Guillemeter.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb guillemeter
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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