French: verbs: how to form the imparfait
The tutor shows the easy trick to form the imparfait.
Way back in my post from Aug 24, 2012, I mentioned when to use the imparfait vs passé composé vs plus-que-parfait. Today, it’s been brought to my attention that many students might have trouble constructing the imparfait. Here’s how:
- If the verb is not être, the stem is the present nous form of the verb, without ons. Example: for the verb travailler, the imparfait stem is travaill
The endings, then, are as follows:
| pronoun | ending |
| je | -ais |
| tu | -ais |
| elle/il | -ait |
| nous | -ions |
| vous | -iez |
| elles/ils | -aient |
- For the verb être, the stem is ét, but the endings are as above.
Jack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane, Campbell River, BC.
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