Imparfait - Formation

The imparfait is surprisingly logical. It relies on a secret key from the present tense. That key is the nous form. If you know the present tense, you are halfway there. You take the nous form and strip it down. You remove the -ons to find your stem. This stem is your base for every single person. It is consistent and reliable. Most verbs follow this rule perfectly. Even the weirdest verbs usually behave in the imparfait. It is like a grammar peace treaty.

1. 1Building this tense is a three-step process.
2. 2Find the present tense nous form.
3. 3Remove the -ons ending to get the stem.
4. 4Add the specific imparfait endings.
5. 5Let's look at the endings. They are the same for every verb group.
6. 6je: -ais
7. 7tu: -ais
8. 8il/elle/on: -ait
9. 9nous: -ions
10. 10vous: -iez
11. 11ils/elles: -aient
12. 12Take the verb parler. In the present, we say nous parlons. Drop the -ons to get parl-. Now, add your endings. You get je parlais and nous parlions. For -ir verbs like finir, use nous finissons. The stem is finiss-. So, you get je finissais. It sounds like a lot of "s" sounds, right? That is perfectly normal.

Use this tense for things that were "ongoing."

• Habits: Things you did repeatedly. "I used to play soccer every Sunday."
• Descriptions: Setting the physical scene. "The sun was shining brightly."
• Age and Time: Stating how old you were. "I was ten years old then."
• Feelings: Describing your internal state. "I was very happy at work."
• Interrupted Actions: What was happening when something else happened. "I was sleeping when the phone rang."

Imagine you are at a job interview. You describe your previous responsibilities using imparfait. "I managed the team daily." This shows a continuous habit. Or imagine ordering food in a nostalgic cafe. "They used to have the best croissants here." It adds flavor to your stories.

Do not use the imparfait for sudden actions. If something happened once and finished, stop! That is a job for the passé composé.

• Specific events: "I bought a car yesterday." (Use passé composé).
• A sequence of actions: "I woke up, ate, and left." (Use passé composé).
• Changes in state: "Suddenly, I became sad." (Use passé composé).

Think of it like a grammar traffic light. Imparfait is the green light that stays green. Passé composé is the flash of a camera. If the action has a clear start and finish, avoid imparfait. It is not for the "hits" on a timeline. It is for the long lines connecting them.

Native speakers might giggle, but we all make these. The biggest trap is the verb être. It is the only truly irregular verb. You cannot use the nous form (sommes). The stem for être is ét-. So, it becomes j'étais.

Another trap involves spelling for -ger and -cer verbs. For manger, we keep the e before -ais. We write je mangeais. But for nous, we drop it: nous mangions. Why? French pronunciation is picky like that. If you forget the e, it sounds like a hard "g."

Also, watch out for the double i. For verbs like étudier, the nous form is nous étudiions. Yes, two is in a row! It looks like a typo, but it is correct.

People often confuse imparfait with passé composé. Think of a theater play. The imparfait is the scenery, the lighting, and the costumes. It tells us it was dark and the actors were nervous. The passé composé is the action. An actor walks on stage. A glass breaks. The curtain falls.

• Imparfait: "The room was cold." (Background).
• Passé composé: "I closed the window." (Action).

Without imparfait, your stories are just a list of facts. Without passé composé, your stories have no plot. You need both to be a great storyteller.