Published May 7, 2020 • Updated July 2, 2026 — By French teacher David Issokson, teaching French online since 2014
In French, the plus-que-parfait, or pluperfect tense, describes an action that had already happened before another past action. It corresponds to had + past participle in English: had eaten, had gone, had finished, etc. For example, “Je n’ai pas mangé à 18h parce que j’avais déjà mangé à 16h” (I didn’t eat at 6 p.m. because I had already eaten at 4 p.m.)
How to form the plus-que-parfait
The plus-que-parfait is a compound tense, which means it is formed with two parts. The first part is either avoir or être in the imperfect tense. The second part is the past participle of the main verb.
The helping verb you choose depends on how the verb works in the passé composé. Verbs that use avoir in the passé composé also use avoir in the plus-que-parfait. Verbs that use être, including reflexive verbs, also use être in the plus-que-parfait.
imperfect of avoir or être + past participle
| Type of verb | Formula | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Verbs using avoir in the passé composé | imperfect of avoir + past participle | j’avais parlé I had spoken |
| Verbs using être in the passé composé | imperfect of être + past participle | elle était arrivée she had arrived |
| Reflexive verbs | reflexive pronoun + imperfect of être + past participle | je m’étais levé(e) I had gotten up |
Plus-que-parfait conjugation chart
The chart below shows the plus-que-parfait with three common verb types. Parler shows the pattern with avoir, arriver shows the pattern with être, and se lever shows the pattern for reflexive verbs.
Pay special attention to agreement with être verbs. When the plus-que-parfait is formed with être, the past participle agrees with the subject, just as it does in the passé composé.
| Subject | Parler (had spoken) | Aller (had gone) | Se lever (had gotten up) |
|---|---|---|---|
| je | j’avais parlé | j’étais allé(e) | je m’étais levé(e) |
| tu | tu avais parlé | tu étais allé(e) | tu t’étais levé(e) |
| il/elle | il/elle avait parlé | il était allé / elle était allée | il s’était levé / elle s’était levée |
| nous | nous avions parlé | nous étions allé(e)s | nous nous étions levé(e)s |
| vous | vous aviez parlé | vous étiez allé(e)(s) | vous vous étiez levé(e)(s) |
| ils/elles | ils/elles avaient parlé | ils étaient allés / elles étaient allées | ils s’étaient levés / elles s’étaient levées |
With être, the past participle agrees with the subject.
Il était allé. He had gone.
Elle était allée. She had gone.
Ils étaient allés. They had gone.
Elles étaient allées. They had gone.
How the plus-que-parfait is used
The plus-que-parfait is mainly used to show that one action happened before another action in the past.
1. An action completed before another past action
Quand je suis arrivé au cinéma, le film avait déjà commencé.
When I arrived at the movie theater, the movie had already started.
Quand papa est entré dans la cuisine, maman avait déjà préparé le repas.
When Dad entered the kitchen, Mom had already prepared the meal.
2. Explaining the reason for a past situation
Je n’ai pas mangé à 18h parce que j’avais déjà mangé à 16h.
I didn’t eat at 6 p.m. because I had already eaten at 4 p.m.
J’étais fatigué parce que j’avais mal dormi.
I was tired because I had slept badly.
3. Comparing two past moments
Cet hiver, j’ai visité la France. L’année dernière, j’avais visité l’Italie.
This winter, I visited France. The year before, I had visited Italy.
Pendant mon voyage, je me suis promené en ville le mardi. La veille, je m’étais promené à la campagne.
During my trip, I walked around town on Tuesday. The day before, I had walked in the countryside.
4. Reported speech in the past
The plus-que-parfait is also common when reporting what someone said, thought, or explained.
Elle m’a dit qu’elle avait déjà vu ce film.
She told me that she had already seen that movie.
Il a expliqué qu’il était venu en France l’année précédente.
He explained that he had come to France the previous year.
5. Past hypothetical situations with si
The plus-que-parfait is used after si to express an unreal situation in the past.
Si j’avais su, je serais venu plus tôt.
If I had known, I would have come earlier.
Si elle avait étudié, elle aurait réussi l’examen.
If she had studied, she would have passed the exam.
Common words used with the plus-que-parfait
The plus-que-parfait often appears with time words that show one action happened earlier.
déjà – already
avant – before
quand – when
la veille – the day before
parce que – because
📚 Related lessons
- French imperfect tense
- Passé composé
- Être conjugation chart
- Avoir conjugation chart
- French verb tense guide
🚀 More lessons on FrenchLearner
