# Imperfect: je parlais

https://langs123.com/en/french/passe/imparfait/
CEFR A1–A2 · 2026-10-24 · CC BY 4.0, langs123 contributors (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

> The imparfait describes how things were and what used to happen: **j’étais**, **je parlais**, **il faisait**. The stem is the **nous** form of the present without **-ons**; only **être** is an exception: Je **parlais** avec Léa. J’**étais** content.

## Summary

| Point | Rule | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Form | the **nous** stem without **-ons** + **-ais** / **-ais** / **-ait** / **-ions** / **-iez** / **-aient** | Je **parlais** avec Léa. | I was talking to Léa. |
| Form of être | **être**: **étais** / **étais** / **était** / **étions** / **étiez** / **étaient** | Nous **étions** amis. | We were friends. |
| C’était, il y avait | **c’était** / **il y avait** / **il faisait** | C’**était** bien. | It was good. |
| Describing | the scene: people, places, weather, age | J’**avais** dix ans. | I was ten. |
| Habit | what people did regularly, without counting the times | Chaque été, nous **allions** à la mer. | Every summer we went to the seaside. |
| Action in progress | an action in progress: neither start nor end | Je **regardais** la télé. | I was watching TV. |
| Signal words | **avant** / **autrefois** / **souvent** / **d’habitude** / **toujours** | **Avant**, j’**habitais** à Nice. | I used to live in Nice. |
| Spelling | **-ger** → **-geais**, **-cer** → **-çais**; no **e** or **ç** with **nous** and **vous** | Je **mangeais** tôt. / Nous **mangions** tard. | I used to eat early. / We used to eat late. |
| Pronunciation | **ais**, **ait**, **aient**: always /ɛ/ | Il **parlait**. / Ils **parlaient**. | He was speaking. / They were speaking. |
| Trap | **je** becomes **j’** before **étais** and **avais** | J’étais fatigué. | I was tired. |
| Trap | age takes **avoir**: **j’avais**, not **j’étais** | Elle **avait** douze ans. | She was twelve. |

## Overview

- The imparfait describes the scene: how people, places and the weather were. Il **faisait** beau et la maison **était** calme. (The weather was fine and the house was quiet.)
- It also tells what people did regularly, without counting the times. Le dimanche, nous **mangions** chez ma grand-mère. (On Sundays we ate at my grandmother's.)
- It shows an action in progress: neither its start nor its end is in view. Je **lisais** dans ma chambre. (I was reading in my room.)
- For a finished event, the past uses the passé composé: Passé Composé: j’ai mangé.
- The choice between the two past tenses: Passé Composé or Imperfect.

## Form: the endings

| Person | parler | finir | faire |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| je / j’ | **parlais** | **finissais** | **faisais** |
| tu | **parlais** | **finissais** | **faisais** |
| il / elle / on | **parlait** | **finissait** | **faisait** |
| nous | **parlions** | **finissions** | **faisions** |
| vous | **parliez** | **finissiez** | **faisiez** |
| ils / elles | **parlaient** | **finissaient** | **faisaient** |

- The endings are the same for every verb; the stem comes from **nous parlons**, **nous finissons**, **nous faisons**. Tu **finissais** à six heures. / Ils **prenaient** le bus. (You finished at six. / They took the bus.)
- Before a vowel, **je** becomes **j’**: **j’avais**, **j’allais**. J’allais à l’école à pied. (I walked to school.)

## Form: être, avoir and aller

| Person | être | avoir | aller |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| je / j’ | **étais** | **avais** | **allais** |
| tu | **étais** | **avais** | **allais** |
| il / elle / on | **était** | **avait** | **allait** |
| nous | **étions** | **avions** | **allions** |
| vous | **étiez** | **aviez** | **alliez** |
| ils / elles | **étaient** | **avaient** | **allaient** |

- **Être** is the only verb with a stem of its own: **ét-**. J’**étais** petit. / Nous **étions** amis. (I was small. / We were friends.)

## Spelling: -ger and -cer

| Rule | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Verbs in **-ger**: **e** before **a**, none before **i**. | Je **mangeais** à midi. / Nous **mangions** tard. | I used to eat at noon. / We used to eat late. |
| Verbs in **-cer**: **ç** before **a**, **c** before **i**. | Elle **commençait** à huit heures. / Nous **commencions** à neuf heures. | She used to start at eight. / We used to start at nine. |

## Pronunciation: the endings

- The endings **ais**, **ait** and **aient** are all pronounced /ɛ/. Il **parlait**. / Ils **parlaient**. (He was speaking. / They were speaking.)
- With **nous** and **vous**, the ending is heard: /ljɔ̃/ and /lje/. Nous **parlions**. / Vous **parliez**. (We were speaking. / You were speaking.)
- In **faisais**, **fais-** is said /fəz/. Je **faisais** du sport. / Il **faisait** beau. (I used to do sport. / The weather was fine.)

## C’était, il y avait, il faisait

| Use | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **c’était** + adjective: an opinion about the past | C’**était** bien. / C’**était** très bon. | It was good. / It was very tasty. |
| **c’était** + noun: saying what something was | C’**était** un grand jardin. | It was a big garden. |
| **il y avait**: what existed | Il y **avait** beaucoup de monde. | There were a lot of people. |
| **il faisait** + **beau** / **chaud** / **froid**: the weather | Il **faisait** chaud. / Il **faisait** froid. | It was hot. / It was cold. |
| **il pleuvait**, **il neigeait**: rain and snow | Il **pleuvait** et le vent **soufflait**. | It was raining and the wind was blowing. |

- In the present: C’est and Il est and There Is: il y a.

## Use

| Use | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Describing a person, a thing, a place | Ma grand-mère **était** petite et **avait** les cheveux blancs. | My grandmother was small and had white hair. |
| Age, time and states | J’**avais** dix ans. / Il **était** huit heures. / Elle **était** fatiguée. | I was ten. / It was eight o'clock. / She was tired. |
| A habit in the past | Chaque été, nous **allions** à la mer. | Every summer we went to the seaside. |
| An action in progress in the past | Je **regardais** la télé. / Il **dormait**. | I was watching TV. / He was sleeping. |

## Signal words

| Time word | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| avant, autrefois, à cette époque | **Avant**, j’**habitais** à Nice. | I used to live in Nice. |
| quand j’étais petit, quand j’avais dix ans | **Quand j’étais petit**, je **jouais** au foot. | When I was little, I played football. |
| toujours, souvent, d’habitude, tous les jours | **D’habitude**, nous **mangions** à sept heures. | Usually we ate at seven. |
| le lundi, le soir, chaque été | **Le soir**, elle **lisait** un livre. | In the evening she read a book. |

- A time word alone does not choose the past tense: Passé Composé or Imperfect.

## Typical errors

| ✗ | ✓ |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Je étais fatigué. | J’étais fatigué. | **je** becomes **j’** before **étais** |
| Il parlais. | Il **parlait**. | with **il** the ending is **ait**; **ais** goes with **je** and **tu** |
| Ils parlait. | Ils **parlaient**. | **ils** and **elles** take **aient** |
| Nous mangeions. | Nous **mangions**. | with **nous** and **vous**, no **e** before **i** |
| Il commencait à pleuvoir. | Il **commençait** à pleuvoir. | **ç** before **a** keeps the sound /s/ |
| Quand j’étais petit, j’ai joué dehors. | Quand j’étais petit, je **jouais** dehors. | a regular habit in the past takes the imparfait, even when English says “played” |
| J’étais dix ans. | J’**avais** dix ans. | age is said with **avoir**: **j’avais dix ans**, literally “I had ten years” |