Imperfect Subjunctive in French

Overview

The imperfect subjunctive (subjonctif imparfait) is a literary tense used in formal writing to express doubt, desire, emotion, or necessity in the past. It appears in subordinate clauses when the main verb is in a past tense and the context requires the subjunctive mood. In modern everyday French, the present subjunctive has almost entirely replaced it, but in literature and highly formal prose, the imperfect subjunctive remains a marker of elegant style.

At the C1 level, you need to recognize the imperfect subjunctive when reading French literature and formal texts. Its forms can look unusual — the circumflex accent on the third person singular (qu'il parlât, qu'il fît, qu'il vînt) is a distinctive visual marker that helps you identify it on the page.

This tense is built on the stem of the passé simple, which means that mastering the passé simple makes the imperfect subjunctive much easier to learn. The two tenses share the same irregularities and stem patterns.

How It Works

Formation

Take the passé simple stem (from the tu form) and add the imperfect subjunctive endings:

Person	Ending	parler (parlasse)	finir (finisse)	avoir (eusse)	être (fusse)
je	-sse	que je parlasse	que je finisse	que j'eusse	que je fusse
tu	-sses	que tu parlasses	que tu finisses	que tu eusses	que tu fusses
il/elle	-^t	qu'il parlât	qu'il finît	qu'il eût	qu'il fût
nous	-ssions	que nous parlassions	que nous finissions	que nous eussions	que nous fussions
vous	-ssiez	que vous parlassiez	que vous finissiez	que vous eussiez	que vous fussiez
ils/elles	-ssent	qu'ils parlassent	qu'ils finissent	qu'ils eussent	qu'ils fussent

Key points:

• The third person singular always has a circumflex accent on the vowel before -t: parlât, finît, eût, fût, vînt
• The stem comes from the passé simple: parla- → parlasse, fini- → finisse, eu- → eusse
• Irregular stems mirror passé simple irregularities: venir → vînt (passé simple: vint), faire → fît

Common Irregular Forms (3rd person singular)

Verb	Passé simple (il)	Imperfect subjunctive (qu'il)
être	fut	fût
avoir	eut	eût
faire	fit	fît
venir	vint	vînt
tenir	tint	tînt
pouvoir	put	pût
savoir	sut	sût
voir	vit	vît
prendre	prit	prît

When It Is Used

Main clause tense	Subordinate clause	Example
Imperfect	Imperfect subjunctive	Je voulais qu'il vînt.
Passé simple	Imperfect subjunctive	Il fallut qu'elle partît.
Conditional	Imperfect subjunctive	Je voudrais qu'il fût là.
Pluperfect	Imperfect subjunctive	J'avais voulu qu'il vînt.

Examples in Context

French	English	Note
Je voulais qu'il vînt.	I wanted him to come.	Past main verb + subjunctive
Il fallait qu'elle partît.	She had to leave.	Impersonal + imperfect subj.
Bien qu'il fût riche, il vivait simplement.	Although he was rich, he lived simply.	Concession in past narrative
Pourvu qu'il réussît!	If only he would succeed!	Wish in literary style
Je doutais qu'il pût comprendre.	I doubted he could understand.	Doubt + pouvoir
Il était nécessaire qu'on le sût.	It was necessary that it be known.	Necessity in past
Quoiqu'il eût raison, personne ne le crut.	Although he was right, nobody believed him.	avoir in imperfect subj.
Le roi ordonna qu'on le fît entrer.	The king ordered that he be brought in.	faire in imperfect subj.
Sans qu'il le vît, elle s'approcha.	Without his seeing it, she approached.	voir in imperfect subj.
Il craignait que la vérité ne se sût.	He feared the truth might become known.	Fear + savoir

Common Mistakes

Confusing imperfect subjunctive with passé simple

• Wrong: Reading qu'il parlât as a passé simple form
• Right: The circumflex accent and the que signal the imperfect subjunctive
• Why: The passé simple is il parla (no circumflex, no que). The imperfect subjunctive is qu'il parlât (circumflex + subordinate clause). The circumflex is the key visual difference.

Using the imperfect subjunctive in conversation

• Wrong: Je voulais que tu vinsses. (in speech)
• Right: Je voulais que tu viennes. (present subjunctive, used in modern French)
• Why: The imperfect subjunctive sounds absurd in spoken French. Modern usage always substitutes the present subjunctive regardless of the main clause tense.

Forgetting the circumflex on the third person

• Wrong: qu'il parlat, qu'il fut (in literary writing)
• Right: qu'il parlât, qu'il fût
• Why: The circumflex is mandatory on the third person singular and distinguishes the imperfect subjunctive from other forms (notably the passé simple).

Usage Notes

The imperfect subjunctive is virtually extinct in spoken French. Even highly educated speakers would never use it in conversation — doing so would be perceived as comically pretentious. The comedian and writer use it as a deliberate humorous device.

In writing, its use has declined significantly since the mid-20th century. Most modern novelists use the present subjunctive even after past tense main verbs. However, prestige publications like Le Monde still use it occasionally, and it remains standard in literary prose that employs the passé simple.

The third person singular is by far the most commonly encountered form. The first and second person plural forms (que nous parlassions, que vous parlassiez) are so rare that even in 19th-century literature they appear infrequently.

A famous joke illustrates the tense's comic potential: the imperfect subjunctive of traire (to milk) would be qu'il trayât — a form so absurd that the verb is simply avoided in this tense.

Practice Tips

1. Read passages from Flaubert's Madame Bovary or Maupassant's short stories and identify every imperfect subjunctive form. Note the main clause tense and the conjunction or trigger that requires the subjunctive.
2. Practice converting present subjunctive sentences to imperfect subjunctive for the third person singular only — this is the form you will encounter most and should recognize instantly: qu'il fasse → qu'il fît, qu'il soit → qu'il fût.
3. Create a reference card with the 10 most common verbs in the third person singular imperfect subjunctive. Keep it handy while reading French literature.

Related Concepts

• Present Subjunctive — the parent tense and modern replacement
• Pluperfect Subjunctive — the compound form built on the imperfect subjunctive