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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb dévaler

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The English translation of the French verb dévaler is “to rush down” or “to go down quickly”. The infinitive form is pronounced “day-vah-lay”.

Dévaler comes from the Latin word “vallare” which means “to surround with a rampart”. It is most often used in everyday French in the Subjonctif Passé tense, which is a past subjunctive tense that expresses a hypothetical or uncertain action or event.

Here are three simple examples of its usage in this tense with their English translations:

  1. Il était important que tu aies dévalé l’escalier avec précaution. (It was important that you had rushed down the stairs carefully.)

  2. Je regrette que nous ayons dévalé la montagne si vite. (I regret that we had gone down the mountain so quickly.)

  3. Il était presque certain que le chat ait dévalé le toit. (It was almost certain that the cat had rushed down the roof.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je sois dévalé Il faut que je sois dévalé avant le coucher du soleil. I must have descended before sunset.
tu sois dévalé Tu préfères que je sois dévalé ou que je prenne la route plus longue? Would you rather I descended or take the longer route?
il soit dévalé Il est possible qu’il soit dévalé en bas de la colline. It’s possible he descended down the hill.
elle soit dévalée Elle souhaite qu’elle soit dévalée avant la pluie. She wishes she had descended before the rain.
on soit dévalé On veut qu’on soit dévalé avant le coucher du soleil. We want to have descended before sunset.
nous soyons dévalés Nous devons faire attention à ce que nous soyons dévalés avant la nuit. We must make sure we have descended before nightfall.
vous soyez dévalés Il est important que vous soyez dévalés rapidement. It’s important that you descended quickly.
ils soient dévalés Ils doutent qu’ils soient dévalés avant la nuit. They doubt they descended before nightfall.
elles soient dévalées Elles préfèrent qu’elles soient dévalées plutôt que de faire face à la tempête. They prefer to have descended rather than face the storm.

Other Conjugations for Dévaler.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb dévaler
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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