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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb décompter

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The English translation of the French verb décompter is “to deduct” or “to discount.” It is pronounced as “dey-compt-eh” in its infinitive form.

Décompter comes from the Old French word “decompter,” which is derived from the Latin word “computare,” meaning “to count” or “to calculate.” It is most often used in everyday French in the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense, which is a past tense used for hypothetical or uncertain situations.

Here are 3 examples of décompter in the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense with their English translations:

  1. J’aurais aimé que tu te sois décompté le montant des taxes avant de payer. (I wish you had deducted the amount of taxes before paying.)
  2. Il avait fallu que nous nous soyons décomptés de nos vacances pour payer les factures. (We had to deduct from our vacation to pay the bills.)
  3. Elle aurait voulu qu’ils se soient décomptés des heures supplémentaires pour avoir plus de temps libre. (She would have liked them to deduct the overtime hours for more free time.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je eusse décompté J’aurais souhaité que je eusse décompté avant la fin de la journée. I wish I had counted before the end of the day.
tu eusses décompté J’aurais souhaité que tu eusses décompté avant la fin de la journée. I wish you had counted before the end of the day.
il eût décompté J’aurais souhaité qu’il eût décompté avant la fin de la journée. I wish he had counted before the end of the day.
elle eût décompté J’aurais souhaité qu’elle eût décompté avant la fin de la journée. I wish she had counted before the end of the day.
on eût décompté J’aurais souhaité qu’on eût décompté avant la fin de la journée. I wish one had counted before the end of the day.
nous eussions décompté J’aurais souhaité que nous eussions décompté avant la fin de la journée. I wish we had counted before the end of the day.
vous eussiez décompté J’aurais souhaité que vous eussiez décompté avant la fin de la journée. I wish you had counted before the end of the day.
ils eussent décompté J’aurais souhaité qu’ils eussent décompté avant la fin de la journée. I wish they had counted before the end of the day.
elles eussent décompté J’aurais souhaité qu’elles eussent décompté avant la fin de la journée. I wish they had counted before the end of the day.

Other Conjugations for Décompter.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb décompter
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Décompter – 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.

I hope you enjoyed this article on the verb décompter. Still in a learning mood? Check out another TOTALLY random French verb conjugation!

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