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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb en contrebalancer

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The English translation of en contrebalancer is “to balance out” or “to counterbalance”. The infinitive form, en contrebalancer, is pronounced as “ahn kon-truh-bal-on-say”.

The language origin of en contrebalancer is from the French words “contre” meaning “against” and “balancer” meaning “to balance”. It is most commonly used in everyday French in the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense, which is a compound tense used to express an action that happened before another action in the past.

Some examples of its usage in this tense with English translations are:

  1. Nous aurions en contrebalancé nos dépenses si nous avions su que nos revenus allaient diminuer. (We would have balanced out our expenses if we had known that our income would decrease.)

  2. Il aurait fallu que je t’aide en contrebalançant tes efforts pour que tu réussisses ton examen. (I should have helped you balance out your efforts so that you could pass your exam.)

  3. J’aurais préféré que tu en contrebalances tes commentaires négatifs avec des compliments. (I would have preferred if you balanced out your negative comments with compliments.)

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

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

Other Conjugations for En Contrebalancer.

   
    Le Present (Present Tense) Conjugation of the French Verb en contrebalancer
   

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb en contrebalancer
   

    Passé Simple (Simple Past) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb en contrebalancer
   

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

    Futur Simple (Simple Future) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb en contrebalancer
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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En Contrebalancer – 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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