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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb bornoyer

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The English translation of the French verb bornoyer is “to squint” or “to glance askance”. It is pronounced “bohr-nwah-yey”.

Bornoyer comes from the French word “borne”, meaning “limit” or “boundary”, and the suffix “-oyer”, which is often used to form verbs and means “to look or watch”. Therefore, bornoyer literally means “to look at the boundary”. It is most commonly used in everyday French in the Subjonctif Passé tense, which is a literary tense used to express uncertainty or doubt about a past action.

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

  1. Il fallait que je bornoyasse pour voir le panneau de signalisation. (It was necessary for me to squint to see the road sign.)
  2. Elle doutait qu’il eût bornoyé pour éviter le soleil dans ses yeux. (She doubted that he had squinted to avoid the sun in his eyes.)
  3. J’avais peur qu’il n’eût bornoyé pour cacher sa véritable intention. (I was afraid that he had squinted to hide his true intention.)

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

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

Other Conjugations for Bornoyer.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb bornoyer
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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