A2 · The past
The imparfait
«used to» and «was —ing» in a single form.
The imparfait is built from the «nous» form of the present: nous parlons gives parl- plus the endings -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. être is the only exception: j'étais.
It names a state, a habit, or something that was going on — not a single event. English needs two separate constructions for that and French has one. «I used to go to the sea» and «I was going to the sea» are j'allais à la mer, both of them, and the context sorts out which is meant.
That merger is why the imparfait turns up in descriptions and in the weather: il faisait froid et il pleuvait — it was cold and it was raining. If you can say «used to» or «was —ing» in English without changing the sense, the imparfait is the form you want.
Die Form
| I used to speak, I was speaking | je parlais |
| you were doing | tu faisais |
| he had | il avait |
| we were | nous étions |
| you used to go | vous alliez |
| they were taking | ils prenaient |
Die Regeln im Einzelnen
The stem comes from the «nous» form of the present.
nous finissons → je finissaiswe finish → I was finishing
être is the only exception.
J’étais fatigué.I was tired.
A habit goes in the imparfait.
Quand j’étais petit, j’allais à la mer.When I was small, I used to go to the sea.
A description of the circumstances goes in the imparfait.
Il faisait froid et il pleuvait.It was cold and it was raining.
Woran man es erkennt
- souvent
- toujours
- quand j’étais
- tous les jours
Beispielsätze
Avant, nous habitions à Lille.We used to live in Lille.
Elle portait une robe bleue.She was wearing a blue dress.
On mangeait souvent chez eux.We often used to eat at their place.
Il était tard et j’avais faim.It was late and I was hungry.
Die typisch deutsche Falle
Aufgepasst
The test is «used to» or «was —ing», not «did». «I went to the cinema yesterday» is a single event and takes the passé composé — je suis allé au cinéma — even though English uses its plain past there, and even though the French form is the compound one. What decides is the kind of past, not how many words the English needs.
If «used to» or «was —ing» fits, the imparfait fits.
Jetzt selbst
5 Aufgaben zu diesem Thema. Die Antworten werden im Browser geprüft; nichts davon verlässt Ihr Gerät.