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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb garder

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The English translation of the French verb garder is “to keep” or “to guard”. It is pronounced as [gaʁ.de].

Garder comes from the Old French word “gardier” which derives from the Vulgar Latin word “guardare” meaning “to watch over” or “to protect”. It is most often used in everyday French to express the action of preserving or maintaining something or someone.

In the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense, garder is used to express an action that had been completed before another action in the past. It is formed by conjugating the auxiliary verb avoir or être in the imparfait tense and adding the past participle of garder.

Three simple examples of its usage in this tense are:

  1. Il était heureux que tu aies gardé les billets de concert. (It was lucky that you had kept the concert tickets.)

  2. J’étais contente qu’elle eût gardé mon secret. (I was happy that she had kept my secret.)

  3. Nous étions surpris qu’ils eussent gardé leur calme dans cette situation difficile. (We were surprised that they had kept their calm in this difficult situation.)

  4. It was lucky that you had kept the concert tickets.

  5. I was happy that she had kept my secret.

  6. We were surprised that they had kept their calm in this difficult situation.

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

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

Other Conjugations for Garder.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb garder
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

    L’infinitif Présent (Infinitive Present) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb garder
    (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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Garder – 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 garder. Still in a learning mood? Check out another TOTALLY random French verb conjugation!

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