For narrating an action or event completed in the past:

Avoir Passé Composé = ou + Participe Passé Etre

 The passé composé is formed by combining the present tense of the helping verb avoir (to have)and the past participle of the verbs. Parler / to speakChoisir / to chooseAttendre / to wait I spoke, I have spokenI chose, I have chosenI waited, I have waited J’ ai parlé Tu as parlé Il/elle a parlé Nous avons parlé Vous avez parlé Ils /elles ont parlé J’ ai choisi Tu as choisi Il/elle a choisi Nous avons choisi Vous avez choisi Ils /elles ont choisi J’ ai attendu Tu as attendu Il/elle a attendu Nous avons attendu Vous avez attendu Ils /elles ont attendu

 In a negative sentence in the passé composé, ne precedes and pas follows the helping verb. Il n’a pas réussi He has not succeeded Elle n’a pas encore mangé She has not eaten yet  In an interrogative sentence in the passé composé, the subject pronoun and the helping verb are inverted. As-tu changé d’opinion? Have you changed your mind? Le programme a-t-il commencé? Did the program start?

 In a negative interrogative sentence the passé composé, ne and pas surround the inverted helping verb and the subject pronoun. N’avez –vous pas fini? Haven’t you finished? M. Thomas n’a-t-il pas répondu? Didn’t Mr. Thomas answer?  Interrogative sentences can also be formed without inversion, using either est-ce que or simple intonation, especially in conversations. Tu as changé d’opinion? Have you changed your mind? Tu n’a pas changé d’opinion? Haven’t you changed your mind? Est-ce qu’il a bien travaillé? Has he worked well? Est-ce qu’il n’a pas bien travaillé? Hasn’t he worked well?

 The following verbs and verbs conjugated like them have irregular past participles.  Past participles ending in –u Avoir to have eu Boire to drink bu Connaitre to know connu Croire to believe cru Courir to run couru Devoir to have to, to owe du Falloir to be necessary fallu Lire to read lu Pleuvoir to rain plu Pouvoir to be able to pu Recevoir to receive reçu Savoir to know su Voir to see vu Vouloir to want voulu

 Past participles ending in –is  Past participles ending in –it  Irregular past participles Prendre to take pris Apprendre to learn appris Comprendre to understand compris Mettre to put mis Promettre to promise promis Conduire to drive conduit Dire to say dit Ecrire to write écritEtre to be été Faire to do fait Ouvrir to open ouvert

Avoir Passé Composé = or + Past Participle Etre: House verbs Reflexives

 Devenir  Revenir  &  Monter  Rentrer  Sortir  Venir  Arriver  Naitre  Descendre  Entrer  Retourner  Tomber  Rester  Aller  Mourir  Partir

 Past participles of verbs conjugated with être agree in gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural) with the subject. Elles sont sorties They went out. Maria est née en avril. Maria was born in April. MASCULIN SUBJECTSFEMININ SUBJECTS Je suis arrivé Tu es arrivé Il est arrivé Nous sommes arrivés Vous êtes arrivé(s) Ils sont arrivés Je suis arrivée Tu es arrivée Il est arrivée Nous sommes arrivées Vous êtes arrivée(s) Ils sont arrivées I arrived, have arrived You arrived, have arrived He/she arrived, has arrived We arrived, have arrived You arrived, have arrived They arrived, have arrived

 NOTE: The interrogative, negative and negative interrogative forms of the passé composé of verbs conjugated with être follow the same rules as verbs conjugated with avoir. Est-ce qu’elle est revenue? Elle est revenue? Did she come back? Est-elle revenue? Elle n’est pas revenue. She didn’t come back. Est-ce qu’elle n’est pas revenue? Elle n’est pas revenue? Didn’t she come back? N’est –elle pas revenue?

 The following verbs are conjugated with avoir instead of être when these verbs have a direct object. Note the differences in meanings.  Il est descendu de l’avion.  Il a descendu ses bagages.  Il a descendu l’escalier. Descendre Monter sortir Tourner Retourner Entrer Rentrer