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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb borner

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The English translation of the French verb borner is “to limit” or “to bound.” The infinitive form is pronounced as “bohr-nay.”

Borner comes from the Latin word “bornare,” meaning “to restrict” or “to enclose.” It is most commonly used in everyday French in the Subjonctif Passé tense, which is used to express actions or situations that are hypothetical, uncertain, or unreal in the past.

Three simple examples of borner in the Subjonctif Passé tense are:

  1. Il aurait fallu que je borner les dépenses de mon voyage. (I should have limited my travel expenses.)

  2. Il regrettait que ses parents aient borné son choix de carrière. (He regretted that his parents had limited his career choices.)

  3. Je doute que cette loi ait bien borné les pouvoirs du gouvernement. (I doubt that this law effectively limited the powers of the government.)

English translations:

  1. It would have been necessary for me to limit my travel expenses.
  2. He regretted that his parents had restricted his career choices.
  3. I doubt that this law effectively bounded the powers of the government.

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aie borné Je dois m’assurer que j’aie borné. I need to make sure I limited.
tu aies borné Il est nécessaire que tu aies borné. It’s necessary that you limited.
il ait borné Il est important qu’il ait borné. It’s important that he limited.
elle ait borné Elle veut qu’elle ait borné. She wants it to have been limited.
on ait borné On demande qu’on ait borné. We ask for it to have been limited.
nous ayons borné Nous sommes heureux que nous ayons borné. We are glad we limited.
vous ayez borné Il est essentiel que vous ayez borné. It’s essential that you limited.
ils aient borné Ils souhaitent qu’ils aient borné. They wish they limited.
elles aient borné Elles doutent qu’elles aient borné. They doubt they limited.

Other Conjugations for Borner.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb borner
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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