Published February 8, 2022 • Updated March 9, 2026 — This lesson is part of the French grammar curriculum developed by David Issokson, a graduate of McGill University and professional French teacher since 2014. These structured lessons guide students from beginner fundamentals to advanced C1-level fluency through clear, expert-led instruction.
The passé composé is the most common French past tense. It describes actions that were completed in the past. The tense is formed with the present tense of avoir or être plus a past participle.
Examples:
J’ai parlé français. I spoke French.
Je suis allé en France. I went to France.
On this page you’ll learn how to form the passé composé, how past participles work, and how to use common irregular verbs.
What is the French passé composé?
The passé composé describes specific actions that happened in the past and are finished.
In English it can correspond to several different past forms depending on context.
J’ai mangé. I ate.
J’ai mangé. I have eaten.
J’ai mangé. I did eat.
Because the past participle usually does not change, the passé composé is often easier to learn than the present tense.
Passé composé conjugation
To form the passé composé, combine the present tense of the auxiliary verb avoir with the past participle of the main verb.
Example with parler (to speak):
J’ai parlé. I spoke.
Tu as parlé. You spoke.
Il a parlé. He spoke.
Nous avons parlé. We spoke.
Vous avez parlé. You spoke.
Ils ont parlé. They spoke.
The past participle parlé remains the same for every subject while the auxiliary verb changes.
Negation rule for the passé composé
To make the passé composé negative, wrap ne…pas around the auxiliary verb.
Examples:
Nous n’avons pas mangé. We did not eat.
Ils n’ont pas dansé. They didn’t dance.
Vous n’avez pas voyagé. You did not travel.
Passé composé for regular verbs
Regular verbs form their past participles in predictable ways based on the infinitive ending.
Regular -er verbs
For -er verbs, remove -er and add -é.
Example:
parler → parlé
Examples in sentences:
Nous avons mangé la pizza. We ate the pizza.
Marie a travaillé hier. Marie worked yesterday.
Georges a habité à Paris. Georges lived in Paris.
Regular -ir verbs
For -ir verbs, remove -ir and add -i.
Example:
finir → fini
Examples in sentences:
Elle a choisi un livre. She chose a book.
Nous avons réussi l’examen. We succeeded in the exam.
Ils ont obéi aux règles. They obeyed the rules.
Regular -re verbs
For -re verbs, remove -re and add -u.
Example:
attendre → attendu
Examples in sentences:
J’ai attendu le bus. I waited for the bus.
Nous avons entendu la musique. We heard the music.
Ils ont répondu à la question. They answered the question.
Irregular verbs in the passé composé
Many frequently used verbs have irregular past participles in the passé composé. These forms must be memorized.
Examples:
J’ai lu le livre. I read the book.
Pierre a fait un gâteau. Pierre made a cake.
Martin a bu le café. Martin drank the coffee.
Nous avons vu un film. We saw a movie.
Common irregular past participles
The following verbs are among the most common irregular past participles used in the passé composé.
| Infinitive → Past participle | Passé composé | English |
|---|---|---|
| avoir → eu | J’ai eu | I had |
| être → été | J’ai été | I was / I have been |
| faire → fait | J’ai fait | I did / I made |
| dire → dit | J’ai dit | I said |
| prendre → pris | J’ai pris | I took |
| apprendre → appris | J’ai appris | I learned |
| comprendre → compris | J’ai compris | I understood |
| mettre → mis | J’ai mis | I put |
| voir → vu | J’ai vu | I saw |
| lire → lu | J’ai lu | I read |
| boire → bu | J’ai bu | I drank |
| devoir → dû | J’ai dû | I had to |
| pouvoir → pu | J’ai pu | I was able to |
| vouloir → voulu | J’ai voulu | I wanted |
| savoir → su | J’ai su | I knew |
| vivre → vécu | J’ai vécu | I lived |
| recevoir → reçu | J’ai reçu | I received |
| courir → couru | J’ai couru | I ran |
| croire → cru | J’ai cru | I believed |
| rire → ri | J’ai ri | I laughed |
These irregular past participles are extremely common in everyday spoken French.
Reflexive verbs in the passé composé
Reflexive verbs also use être as their auxiliary verb in the passé composé.
Example:
Je me suis lavé. I washed myself.
Elle s’est réveillée tôt. She woke up early.
Because these verbs use être, the past participle agrees with the subject.
You can learn more about reflexive verbs here:
Past participle agreement with avoir
Normally the past participle does not agree when using avoir.
Example:
J’ai mangé la pizza.
However, if the direct object appears before the verb, the past participle agrees with it.
Example:
Les lettres que j’ai écrites. The letters that I wrote.
Verbs that use être
Some verbs use être instead of avoir as the auxiliary verb in the passé composé.
Example with aller (to go):
Je suis allé au marché. I went to the market.
Nous sommes allés en ville. We went into town.
With these verbs, the past participle must agree with the subject in gender and number.
There is a group of common verbs that use être which are often remembered with the mnemonic Dr. & Mrs. Vandertramp.
You can learn these verbs in detail on the following page:
Passé composé with être verbs »
(coming soon)
📚 Related lessons
- Passé composé vs imparfait
- French verb conjugations
- French grammar hub
- French past participles
- Être verbs in the passe compose
- Future tense (le futur simple)
- Imperfect tense (l’imparfait)
- Conditional tense (le conditionnel)
- Subjunctive (le subjonctif)
- Imperative (l’impératif)
