French Verb Tenses & Moods Revision Sheet

1. 📌 Essentials

• Present tense: current actions, general truths, habits (e.g., Je mange)
• Imparfait: past, ongoing past actions, (e.g., Je lisais)
• Passé simple: brief, completed past actions (mainly literary/written)
• Futur simple: actions to come (e.g., Je partirai)
• Passé composé: recent past, linked to present (auxiliary + past participle)
• Plus-que-parfait: past before another past (imparfait of auxiliary + past participle)
• Passé antérieur: literary, past before passé simple (passé simple of auxiliary + past participle)
• Futur antérieur: future before another future (futur simple of auxiliary + past participle)
• Subjunctive mood: expresses doubt, wish, necessity (present and passé forms)
• Imperative: commands, advice (present and rare passé)
• Gérondif: manner, cause, simultaneous actions (en + participe présent)
• Concordance of tenses: rules linking main and subordinate clauses

2. 🧩 Key Structures & Components