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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb appréhender

Get the Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) tense conjugation of appréhender. Includes a FREE downloadable reference sheet (no email required). Alternatively if you have a lot of text to check then use our free French Grammar Checker – no registration required!

The English translation of the French verb appréhender is “to apprehend” or “to understand”. It is pronounced as “ah-pray-ahn-dreh”.

The word appréhender comes from the Latin word “apprehendere”, meaning “to seize” or “to grasp”. In everyday French, it is most often used in the Subjonctif Passé tense, which is used to express a past possibility or doubt. It is often used to express a hypothetical situation or a wish.

Here are 3 simple examples of its usage in the Subjonctif Passé tense:

  1. J’espère que tu aies appréhendé la gravité de la situation. (I hope that you understood the gravity of the situation.)

  2. Il est peu probable qu’ils aient appréhendé la complexité de cette tâche. (It is unlikely that they understood the complexity of this task.)

  3. Nous aurions aimé que vous ayez appréhendé nos préoccupations. (We would have liked for you to have understood our concerns.)

Table of the Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) Tense Conjugation of appréhender

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aie appréhendé Je doute que j’aie appréhendé. I doubt that I apprehended.
tu aies appréhendé Il faut que tu aies appréhendé. You must have apprehended.
il ait appréhendé Il est possible qu’il ait appréhendé. It’s possible he apprehended.
elle ait appréhendé Elle craint qu’elle ait appréhendé. She fears she apprehended.
on ait appréhendé On veut qu’on ait appréhendé. We want it to have been apprehended.
nous ayons appréhendé Espérons que nous ayons appréhendé. Let’s hope we apprehended.
vous ayez appréhendé Il est important que vous ayez appréhendé. It’s important that you apprehended.
ils aient appréhendé Ils doutent qu’ils aient appréhendé. They doubt they apprehended.
elles aient appréhendé Elles préfèrent qu’elles aient appréhendé. They prefer they apprehended.

Other Conjugations for Appréhender.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb appréhender
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb appréhender     (this article)

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Get a FREE Download Study Sheet of this Conjugation 🔥

Simply right click the image below, click “save image” and get your free reference for the appréhender Subjonctif Passé tense conjugation!

Appréhender – About the French Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) Tense

The French Subjonctif Passé is a verb tense used to express actions or states that are uncertain, hypothetical, or dependent on some condition in the past. It’s often used in conjunction with the main verb in the present or future tense to convey various nuances of doubt, desire, necessity, or emotion.

NOTE: To take a deep dive into all the French tenses then see my article on Mastering French Tense Conjugation.

Formation of the Subjonctif Passé

To form the Subjonctif Passé, you generally need to start with the third person plural (ils/elles) form of the passé composé (a compound past tense). Then, drop the subject and replace it with the appropriate Subjonctif endings. The endings are the same for regular -er, -ir, and -re verbs:

   – For -er verbs: -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez, -ent
   – For -ir verbs: -isse, -isses, -ît, -issions, -issiez, -issent
   – For -re verbs: -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez, -ent

For example, if you have the verb “parler” (to speak) in the third person plural passé composé, which is “ils ont parlé” (they spoke), the Subjonctif Passé form would be “qu’ils aient parlé” (that they spoke).

Everyday Usage Patterns

The Subjonctif Passé is commonly used in various situations:

– Expressing doubt or uncertainty: It’s used when you’re not certain about the completion of an action in the past. For example, “Je doute qu’il ait mangé” (I doubt that he ate).

– Desires and preferences: When you want or wish for something to have happened in the past. For instance, “Je préfère que tu aies réussi” (I prefer that you have succeeded).

– Expressing emotions: To convey emotions or feelings related to past actions or events. For example, “Il est content que nous ayons gagné” (He is happy that we won).

– Hypothetical situations: When discussing hypothetical or unreal past situations. For example, “Si j’avais su, j’aurais souhaité qu’ils aient été là” (If I had known, I would have wished they had been there).

Interactions with Other Tenses

The Subjonctif Passé often interacts with other tenses to convey specific meanings:

Present tense

It’s commonly used after expressions of doubt, desire, necessity, or emotion in the present. For example, “Il faut que tu aies fini” (You must have finished).

Future tense

It’s used in the future for hypothetical or unreal actions in the past when the main clause is in the future. For example, “Je douterai qu’ils aient terminé demain” (I will doubt that they have finished tomorrow).

Conditional

When the main clause is in the conditional, the Subjonctif Passé can be used to express unreal or hypothetical actions in the past. For instance, “Il voudrait que nous ayons réussi” (He would like us to have succeeded).

Summary

The Subjonctif Passé is a versatile tense used in French to convey uncertainty, doubt, desire, or hypothetical situations related to past actions. It is used in various everyday contexts and interacts with other tenses to express specific nuances in the language.

I hope you enjoyed this article on the verb appréhender. Still in a learning mood? Check out another TOTALLY random French verb conjugation!

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply