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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb dépister

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The English translation of the French verb dépister is “to track down” or “to trace”. It is pronounced as “day-pee-stay”.

The origin of dépister can be traced back to the Latin word “dēpistāre”, meaning “to track by foot”. In everyday French, it is most often used in the Subjonctif Passé tense, which is used to express a hypothetical action that has already happened.

Three simple examples of its usage in this tense are:

  1. Il faut que nous ayons dépisté le voleur avant qu’il ne s’échappe. (We must have tracked down the thief before he escaped.)

  2. J’aurais aimé que vous ayez dépisté les racines de votre arbre généalogique. (I wish you had traced the roots of your family tree.)

  3. Je crains qu’ils n’aient pas dépisté la source de la contamination. (I am afraid they did not trace the source of the contamination.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aie dépisté Je doute que j’aie dépisté le virus. I doubt that I have detected the virus.
tu aies dépisté Il faut que tu aies dépisté le problème. You must have detected the problem.
il ait dépisté Il est possible qu’il ait dépisté la maladie. It’s possible he detected the illness.
elle ait dépisté Elle craint qu’elle ait dépisté le mensonge. She fears she has detected the lie.
on ait dépisté On veut qu’on ait dépisté la source du problème. We want the source of the problem to have been detected.
nous ayons dépisté Espérons que nous ayons dépisté la solution. Let’s hope we have detected the solution.
vous ayez dépisté Il est important que vous ayez dépisté les symptômes. It’s important that you have detected the symptoms.
ils aient dépisté Ils doutent qu’ils aient dépisté la fraude. They doubt they have detected the fraud.
elles aient dépisté Elles préfèrent qu’elles aient dépisté les risques. They prefer they have detected the risks.

Other Conjugations for Dépister.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dépister
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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