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

ByMichael Burns

Introduction to the verb griffer

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The English translation of the French verb griffer is “to scratch.” It is pronounced as “gruh-fey” in the infinitive form.

The word griffer comes from the Latin word “graphium,” meaning “stylus” or “pen.” In Old French, it evolved to mean “to write” or “to draw,” and then eventually took on the meaning of “to scratch.”

In everyday French, griffer is most often used in its infinitive form or in the past participle form griffé, which means “scratched.” It can also be used as a noun, le griffage, meaning “scratching.”

Examples of using griffer in the Subjonctif Plus-que-parfait tense would be:

  1. J’aurais aimé que tu aies griffé mon nom sur la carte. (I would have liked for you to have scratched my name on the card.)

  2. Il fallait que j’eusse griffé le dessin sur ce vieux parchemin. (I had to have scratched the drawing on this old parchment.)

  3. Elle aurait préféré que nous eussions griffé les initiales sur l’arbre. (She would have preferred for us to have scratched the initials on the tree.)

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

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

Other Conjugations for Griffer.

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

    Imparfait (Imperfect) Tense Conjugation of the French Verb griffer
   

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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Griffer – 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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