Foreign Languages
Passé composé with avoir.
Definition
The passé composé with avoir is the most common French past tense construction, used to describe completed actions. It is formed with the present tense of 'avoir' as the helping verb plus the past participle of the main verb. Most French verbs use avoir as their auxiliary.
How it works · 4 phases
Step by step.
- Conjugate 'avoir' in the present tense to match the subject (j'ai, tu as, il/elle a, nous avons, vous avez, ils/elles ont).
- Form the past participle: -er verbs → -é, -ir verbs → -i, -re verbs → -u.
- Combine: subject + avoir (conjugated) + past participle.
- For negation, wrap 'avoir' with ne...pas: 'Je n'ai pas mangé.'
Examples
Real-world.
- 1 'J'ai mangé une pomme' — I ate an apple
- 2 'Nous avons fini nos devoirs' — We finished our homework
- 3 'Elle a vendu sa voiture' — She sold her car
Key Fact
Past participle endings: -er → -é, -ir → -i, -re → -u. Common irregulars: fait, dit, vu, pris, bu, écrit.