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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb avoyer

Get the Subjonctif Passé (Subjunctive Past) tense conjugation of avoyer. 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 avoyer is “to send” or “to dispatch.” It is pronounced as “ah-vwah-yey.”

Avoyer comes from the Old French word “envoier,” which means “to send.” In everyday French, it is most often used in the Subjonctif Passé tense, which is a literary tense used to express a hypothetical or uncertain action in the past.

Three simple examples of its usage in this tense, with their respective English translations, are:

  1. J’aurais aimé qu’il avoyât la lettre à temps pour le rendez-vous. (I would have liked if he had sent the letter on time for the meeting.)
  2. Il fallait que nous avoyions le colis avant midi. (It was necessary that we sent the package before noon.)
  3. J’aurais préféré que tu avoyes les documents hier. (I would have preferred if you had sent the documents yesterday.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aie envoyé Je ne crois pas que j’aie envoyé. I don’t believe I sent.
tu aies envoyé Il faut que tu aies envoyé. You must have sent.
il ait envoyé Elle doute qu’il ait envoyé. She doubts he sent.
elle ait envoyé Il est possible qu’elle ait envoyé. It’s possible she sent.
on ait envoyé On veut qu’on ait envoyé. We want it to have been sent.
nous ayons envoyé Espérons que nous ayons envoyé. Let’s hope we sent.
vous ayez envoyé Il est important que vous ayez envoyé. It’s important that you sent.
ils aient envoyé Ils doutent qu’ils aient envoyé. They doubt they sent.
elles aient envoyé Elles préfèrent qu’elles aient envoyé. They prefer they sent.

Other Conjugations for Avoyer.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb avoyer
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    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 avoyer Subjonctif Passé tense conjugation!

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

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply