A2Unit 4 of the A2 course · « Quand j'étais petit »
The imparfait is the tense of memories and descriptions: « quand j'étais petit, j'habitais… ». It has one simple recipe and one exception, and this page shows both with examples.
By the end of this unit you can: describe the past with the imparfait.
Take the nous form of the present, drop -ons, and add -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. Four of the six endings sound exactly the same.
Être has no nous form ending in -ons (it's nous sommes), so it gets its own stem: ét-. The endings don't change.
Quand j'étais petit(e) starts almost every childhood story. The verbs that follow are in the imparfait too, because you're describing how life used to be.
Use it for things that happened again and again (habits), and to describe people, places and weather in the past. If English says « used to » or « was …-ing », French usually wants the imparfait.
To say what someone was like, use était + an adjective. Adjectives still agree: add an e for a woman, unless the word already ends in e.
The imparfait paints the background: what was going on, what things were like. The passé composé tells what happened: one event that moves the story forward. Often a single sentence has both.
Does it answer « what happened next? » Then it's an event: passé composé. Does it answer « what was it like? » or « what was going on? » Then use the imparfait.
Your friend Sam's grandfather grew up in Martinique and taught French for forty years. Over tea, he tells you about his childhood. Listen and answer.
Tap 🔊 to hear each one, recorded by a native-sounding French voice.
| Listen | French | English |
|---|---|---|
| je jouais | I played / I used to playFrom nous jouons: drop -ons, add -ais. | |
| nous habitions | we used to liveFrom nous habitons: drop -ons, add -ions. | |
| vous faisiez | you used to do (plural / formal)From nous faisons. Say « fuh-zyay ». | |
| ils allaient | they used to goThe -aient ending sounds just like -ait: ils jouaient sounds like il jouait. Before a vowel, ils adds a z sound: ils‿allaient. | |
| j'étaisJ'étais très timide. (I was very shy.) | I was / I used to beÊtre is the one verb with an odd stem: ét-. The endings are the same as for every other verb. | |
| j'avaisJ'avais un chien. (I had a dog.) | I had / I used to have | |
| il y avaitIl y avait un grand arbre devant la maison. (There was a big tree in front of the house.) | there was / there were | |
| c'étaitC'était super ! (It was great!) | it was |
| Listen | French | English |
|---|---|---|
| enfance(feminine)J'ai passé mon enfance à Salvador. (I spent my childhood in Salvador.) | childhood | |
| quand j'étais petit(e) | when I was littleA woman says petite, and you hear the t. | |
| quartier(masculine) | neighbourhood | |
| voisin(masculine) | neighbourA woman is une voisine. | |
| les grands-parents | grandparentsGrand-père and grand-mère. Children often say papi and mamie. | |
| jouet(masculine) | toy | |
| récré(feminine) | break time (at school)Short for la récréation. Every French child says la récré. |
| Listen | French | English |
|---|---|---|
| d'habitude | usually | |
| tous les étés | every summerSame pattern: tous les jours, tous les dimanches, tous les ans. | |
| à l'époqueÀ l'époque, il n'y avait pas d'internet. (Back then, there was no internet.) | back then | |
| il faisait chaud | it was hotWeather uses faire: il faisait froid, il faisait beau. | |
| timide | shySame form for men and women. | |
| sage | well-behaved (child)Said of an adult, sage means wise. | |
| bavard / bavarde | chatty (m / f) |
| Listen | French | English |
|---|---|---|
| je dormais | I was sleepingFrom nous dormons. | |
| il pleuvait | it was raining | |
| le téléphone a sonné | the phone rangPassé composé: one event that happened. | |
| un jour | one dayA signal that something is about to happen in the story. | |
| soudain | suddenlyTout à coup means the same thing. | |
| pendant quePendant que je mangeais, mon ami est arrivé. (While I was eating, my friend arrived.) | while | |
| je suis tombé(e) | I fellPassé composé with être. A woman writes tombée. |
This unit is part of French Ultimate's A2 course: 5 short lessons with an animated video each, speaking and listening practice, a reading and an end-of-unit test.
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