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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb contrarier

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The English translation of the French verb contrarier is “to contradict” or “to oppose.” It is pronounced as “kon-tra-rye” in its infinitive form.

Contrarier comes from the Latin word “contrariare” which means “to oppose” or “to contradict.” It is most often used in everyday French in the Subjonctif Passé tense, which expresses a past hypothetical or unreal action.

3 examples of contrarier in the Subjonctif Passé tense are:

  1. Elle aurait aimé que tu ne la contraries pas autant. (She would have liked it if you hadn’t contradicted her so much.)
  2. Il aurait été contrarié si tu lui avais dit la vérité. (He would have been upset if you had told him the truth.)
  3. Nous aurions préféré que vous ne nous ayez pas contrariés hier soir. (We would have preferred it if you hadn’t opposed us last night.)

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

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

Other Conjugations for Contrarier.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb contrarier
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Contrarier – 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.

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