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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb confédérer

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The English translation of the French verb confédérer is “to federate” or “to form a confederation.” The infinitive form, confédérer, is pronounced as “kon-feh-deh-reh.”

The word confédérer comes from the Latin word “confoederare,” meaning “to unite in a league.” It is derived from the prefix “con,” meaning “together,” and “foedus,” meaning “compact” or “treaty.” In everyday French, confédérer is often used in the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense to express an action that happened in the past and that was completed before another past action. It is formed by using the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être” in the Subjonctif Imparfait tense followed by the past participle of confédérer.

Here are three examples of confédérer used in the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense with their respective English translations:

  1. J’avais confédéré avec mes amis avant de partir en voyage. (I had formed a confederation with my friends before leaving on the trip.)
  2. Elle était contente que nous ayons confédéré pour le projet. (She was happy that we had federated for the project.)
  3. Ils avaient confédéré leurs forces pour affronter l’ennemi. (They had united their forces to confront the enemy.)

Table of the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait (Subjunctive Pluperfect) Tense Conjugation of confédérer

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je eusse confédéré Il est possible que je eusse confédéré avec eux. It’s possible that I had confederated with them.
tu eusses confédéré Tu souhaites que tu eusses confédéré avec eux. You wish you had confederated with them.
il eût confédéré Il est difficile qu’il eût confédéré avec eux. It’s unlikely that he had confederated with them.
elle eût confédéré Elle aimerait qu’elle eût confédéré avec eux. She would like to have confederated with them.
on eût confédéré On peut supposer qu’on eût confédéré avec eux. One can assume they had confederated with them.
nous eussions confédéré Nous espérons que nous eussions confédéré avec eux. We hope we had confederated with them.
vous eussiez confédéré Vous préférez que vous eussiez confédéré avec eux. You prefer you had confederated with them.
ils eussent confédéré Ils auraient aimé qu’ils eussent confédéré avec eux. They would have liked to have confederated with them.
elles eussent confédéré Elles auraient souhaité qu’elles eussent confédéré avec eux. They would have wished to have confederated with them.

Other Conjugations for Confédérer.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb confédérer
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb confédérer
    (this article)

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Confédérer – About the French Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait (Subjunctive Pluperfect) Tense

The French Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait, also known as the Pluperfect Subjunctive, is a verb tense used to express actions or states that occurred before another action in the past, and it’s used in situations where the indicative mood is in the past subjunctive or conditional mood.
NOTE: To take a deep dive into all the French tenses then see my article on Mastering French Tense Conjugation.

Formation

To form the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait, you start with the imperfect subjunctive form of the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être,” followed by the past participle of the main verb. 
For “avoir” verbs: Take the imperfect subjunctive form of “avoir” (e.g., j’eusse, tu eusses, il/elle eût, nous eussions, vous eussiez, ils/elles eussent). Add the past participle of the main verb. 
For “être” verbs: Take the imperfect subjunctive form of “être” (e.g., je fusse, tu fusses, il/elle fût, nous fussions, vous fussiez, ils/elles fussent). Add the past participle of the main verb.

Common Everyday Usage Patterns

Hypothetical Situations

The Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait is often used to express hypothetical or unreal actions that occurred before another past action.
For example: J’aurais aimé que tu aies fini ton travail avant que je sois arrivé. (I would have liked for you to have finished your work before I arrived.) 

Reported Speech

In reported speech, you may use the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait to convey what someone said or thought in the past. 
For example: Il m’a dit qu’il avait peur que je n’aie pas compris. (He told me that he was afraid that I hadn’t understood.) 

Doubt, Wishes, and Emotions

This tense can also be used to express doubt, wishes, and emotions about past actions. 
For example: Je doutais qu’il eût dit la vérité. (I doubted that he had told the truth.) 
J’aurais souhaité que tu fusses venu. (I would have wished for you to have come.)

Interactions with Other Tenses

Present Subjunctive

The Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait can be used to describe past actions when the main verb is in the present subjunctive. 
For example: “Il faut que j’aie fini mon travail avant que tu partes.” (I must have finished my work before you leave.) 

Imperfect Subjunctive

It’s common to use the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait with the imperfect subjunctive in complex sentences. 
For example: “Il m’avait dit qu’il fût rentré avant la fin de la journée.” (He had told me that he had returned before the end of the day.) 

Conditional

When the main verb is in the conditional mood, the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait can be used to express past unreal conditions. 
For example: “Si j’avais su, j’aurais voulu que tu aies réussi.” (If I had known, I would have wanted you to have succeeded.)

Summary

The Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait is a complex tense used to convey nuanced meanings in French. While its usage may seem intricate, it becomes more intuitive with practice and exposure to the language. It’s important to understand the context in which it’s used, as it often conveys subtleties of time, conditionality, and emotion in French sentences.

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