Je chante J’ai chanté Je vais chanter Present tense Past tense Near future tense

Quand j’étais petit(e), je jouais au foot.

Il faisait ses devoirs quand le bruit a commencé.

L’imparfait

The imperfect is a past tense. When to use the imparfait... 1.To describe something that you USED TO do (continuously repeated action) in the past. Eg:When I was little, I used to play football. Quand j’étais petit(e), je jouais au foot.

2. Describe a CONTINUOUS ACTION in the past. Eg:He was doing his homework. Il faisait ses devoirs.

3. To give description in the past. Eg:It was dark. Il faisait nuit. 4. For an action that was taking place before something else happened. Eg:Anne arrived while I was watching t.v. Anne est arrivée pendant que je regardais la télé.

Therefore depending on the meaning of the sentence the imparfait can be translated 3 ways... Il buvait -He used to drink He was drinking He drank

How to form l’imparfait 1. Take the ‘nous’ form of the present tense... Eg: (nous) donnons, finissons, vendons 2. Take off the ‘ons’ ending… Eg: donn..., finiss..., vend Add the following endings… - ais - ait / ait - ions - iez - aient / aient

There is only one irregular verb in the imperfect… Être – to be J’étais Tu étais Il était Elle était Nous étions Vous étiez Ils étaient Elles étaient

Des Phrases She used to take the train every morning. __________________________________ 2. It was cold. ___________________________________ 3. He had brown hair. ___________________________________ 4. The house was big and there was a garden in front. ______________________________________

1. The man was tall. ___________________________________ 2. I was waiting for you. ____________________________________ 3. The sun was shining. ____________________________________ 4. It was interesting. ____________________________________ 5. I used to play football. ____________________________________