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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb emballer

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The English translation of the French verb emballer is “to pack” or “to wrap.” The infinitive form, “emballer,” is pronounced as [ahm-bah-leh].

Emballer comes from the French word “balle” meaning “ball,” which originated from the Old High German “balla,” meaning “ball” or “bundle.” It is most often used in everyday French to refer to the action of packing or wrapping something, usually in preparation for transport or storage.

In the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense, emballer is used to express an action that is hypothetical or uncertain and that happened before another past event. It is formed by using the past subjunctive form of the auxiliary verb “avoir” or “être,” followed by the past participle “emballé.”

Here are three simple examples of emballer in the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense:

  1. J’aurais aimé que vous ayez emballé vos affaires avant de partir en voyage. (I wish you had packed your things before leaving on the trip.)

  2. Il était important que nous ayons emballé les cadeaux avant que les invités arrivent. (It was important that we had wrapped the gifts before the guests arrived.)

  3. Elle aurait préféré que je sois déjà emballé mes affaires avant de partir en vacances. (She would have preferred if I had already packed my things before leaving for vacation.)

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

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

Other Conjugations for Emballer.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb emballer
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Emballer – 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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