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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb fourrager

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The English translation of the French verb fourrager is “to forage” or “to rummage.” It is pronounced as “foor-aah-zhay.”

The word fourrager comes from the Old French word “forrier,” which means “to search or to rummage.” It is most often used in everyday French to describe the action of searching for something, particularly in a disorganized or chaotic manner.

In the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense, fourrager is used to express a hypothetical or imaginary action that took place before another past action. It is often used in conjunction with the past tense verb “avoir” (to have) or “être” (to be). Here are three examples of its usage in this tense, along with their English translations:

  1. J’avais cherché partout, mais je n’avais pas trouvé mes clés. J’ai finalement dû fourrager dans mon sac pour les retrouver. (I had searched everywhere, but I couldn’t find my keys. I finally had to rummage through my bag to find them.)

  2. Ils avaient promis de me rendre visite, mais ils étaient en retard. J’étais inquiet et j’ai dû m’arrêter pour fourrager dans mon téléphone pour trouver leur numéro. (They had promised to come visit me, but they were running late. I was worried and had to stop to rummage through my phone to find their number.)

  3. Elle avait perdu son billet de train, mais elle ne s’en souvenait pas. Elle a dû fourrager dans son sac pour le retrouver. (She had lost her train ticket, but she didn’t remember. She had to rummage through her bag to find it.)

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

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

Other Conjugations for Fourrager.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb fourrager
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    Struggling with French verbs or the language in general? Why not use our free French Grammar Checker – no registration required!
   

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Fourrager – 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 fourrager. Still in a learning mood? Check out another TOTALLY random French verb conjugation!

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