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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb désembourber

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The English translation of the French verb désembourber is “to dislodge from the mud” or “to get out of a muddy situation.” It is pronounced as “day-sawn-boor-bay.”

Désembourber comes from the combination of the prefix “dés-” meaning “un-” or “dis-” and the verb “embourber” meaning “to get stuck in the mud.” It is a compound verb and is often used in everyday French to describe the act of freeing something or someone from a difficult or sticky situation, both literally and figuratively.

In the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense, désembourber is conjugated as follows:

  • J’eusse désembourbé (I would have dislodged)
  • Tu eusses désembourbé (You would have dislodged)
  • Il/elle eût désembourbé (He/she would have dislodged)
  • Nous eussions désembourbé (We would have dislodged)
  • Vous eussiez désembourbé (You would have dislodged)
  • Ils/elles eussent désembourbé (They would have dislodged)

Three simple examples of désembourber in the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense and their translations are:

  1. Si j’eusse désembourbé la voiture plus tôt, nous ne serions pas arrivés en retard. (If I had freed the car from the mud earlier, we wouldn’t have been late.)
  2. Il aurait fallu que tu eusses désembourbé tes bottes avant de rentrer dans la maison. (You should have dislodged your boots before coming inside the house.)
  3. Les secouristes étaient heureux d’apprendre qu’ils eussent désembourbé le chaton pris au piège sous la maison. (The rescuers were happy to hear that they had freed the kitten trapped under the house.)

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

Pronoun Conjugation Example Usage English Translation
je eusse désembourbé J’aurais aimé que je eusse désembourbé. I wish I had disentangled.
tu eusses désembourbé J’aurais aimé que tu eusses désembourbé. I wish you had disentangled.
il eût désembourbé J’aurais aimé qu’il eût désembourbé. I wish he had disentangled.
elle eût désembourbé J’aurais aimé qu’elle eût désembourbé. I wish she had disentangled.
on eût désembourbé J’aurais aimé qu’on eût désembourbé. I wish one had disentangled.
nous eussions désembourbé J’aurais aimé que nous eussions désembourbé. I wish we had disentangled.
vous eussiez désembourbé J’aurais aimé que vous eussiez désembourbé. I wish you had disentangled.
ils eussent désembourbé J’aurais aimé qu’ils eussent désembourbé. I wish they had disentangled.
elles eussent désembourbé J’aurais aimé qu’elles eussent désembourbé. I wish they had disentangled.

Other Conjugations for Désembourber.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb désembourber
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Désembourber – 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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