Tenses
Tenses are the forms that a verb can take to indicate when the duration of the action is in relation to the past, present and future. The nuances according to the conditions or of a hypothetical realization are as for them expressed by the mode.
Here are the different tenses that exist first in relation to an action in the present moment.
- During the action, we have the present : la pluie tombe.
- Before the action, there is first the imperfect with its beginning and end indefinite in time: la pluie tombait quand je suis entré.
Then we have the simple past that marks a sudden action: la pluie tomba brutalement.
Finally we have the past compound which indicates a recent past: il a plu ce matin.
- After the action, we have the future simple : la pluie tombera demain.
But also the future future when the action is already complete compared to another in the future : Dès qu'il aura fini de pleuvoir, il partira.
Then here are the different times that exist in relation to an action of the past.
- Before the action, we have the past perfect : dès qu'il eut cessé de pleuvoir, il partit and the pluperfect : il avait plu quand vous êtes entrés.
- After the action, we have the future of the past which translates into practice by the present conditional: Je croyais qu'il pleuvrait. And when the action is already finished with respect to such future moment (but always in the past), we use the future past of the past which results in the past conditional: je croyais qu'il aurait plu avant votre départ.
