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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb dessécher

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The English translation of the French verb dessécher is “to dry out” or “to dehydrate.” It is pronounced “deh-seh-shay.”

The word dessécher comes from the prefix des- meaning “apart” or “away” and the word sécher meaning “to dry.” It is most often used in everyday French in the Subjonctif Passé tense, which is used to express a hypothetical or uncertain action that has already happened.

Example 1: J’espère que tu as bien hydraté ta peau avant de sortir au soleil pour ne pas qu’elle se dessèche. (I hope you hydrated your skin well before going out in the sun so it doesn’t dry out.)

Example 2: Il est important que nous ayons desséché les herbes avant de les utiliser dans la cuisine. (It is important that we dried out the herbs before using them in cooking.)

Example 3: Je doute que le linge ait desséché complètement à cause du temps pluvieux. (I doubt that the laundry dried out completely because of the rainy weather.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je aie desséché Je doute que j’aie desséché la terre. I doubt that I dried out the land.
tu aies desséché Il faut que tu aies desséché tes vêtements. You must have dried out your clothes.
il ait desséché Il est possible qu’il ait desséché la plante. It’s possible he dried out the plant.
elle ait desséché Elle craint qu’elle ait desséché les aliments. She fears she dried out the food.
on ait desséché On veut qu’on ait desséché le lac. We want the lake to have been dried out.
nous ayons desséché Espérons que nous ayons desséché la rivière. Let’s hope we dried out the river.
vous ayez desséché Il est important que vous ayez desséché les fleurs. It’s important that you dried out the flowers.
ils aient desséché Ils doutent qu’ils aient desséché la terre. They doubt they dried out the land.
elles aient desséché Elles préfèrent qu’elles aient desséché les fruits. They prefer they dried out the fruit.

Other Conjugations for Dessécher.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dessécher
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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