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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb décliner

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The English translation of the French verb décliner is “to decline” or “to refuse.” It is pronounced as “dey-klee-neh” in its infinitive form.

Décliner comes from the Old French word “decliner,” which derives from the Latin word “declinare,” meaning “to bend” or “to turn away.” In everyday French, décliner is most often used in the Subjonctif Passé tense, which is a verb form used to express hypothetical or uncertain actions in the past.

Three simple examples of décliner in the Subjonctif Passé tense with their English translations are:

  1. Nous avons demandé à Pierre de venir avec nous, mais il a décliné, préférant rester à la maison. (We asked Pierre to come with us, but he declined, preferring to stay at home.)

  2. Elle aurait aimé participer à la fête, mais elle a décliné l’invitation à cause de son travail. (She would have liked to attend the party, but she declined the invitation because of her work.)

  3. J’espérais qu’il accepterait mon offre, mais il a décliné poliment, affirmant qu’il avait d’autres engagements. (I was hoping he would accept my offer, but he politely declined, saying he had other commitments.)

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

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

Other Conjugations for Décliner.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb décliner
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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