Gap-fill
Déjà, jamais or pas encore? A plus-que-parfait gap-fill
Follow Léa’s first night-train journey. Choose already, never, not yet and again in an eight-gap story, with a reference table and translation.
- B1
- 8 gaps
- Translation included
- Learn this in the B1 notebook →
In short
Déjà means already, ne… jamais means never, and ne… pas encore means not yet at the past moment you are describing. Place these short adverbs between the auxiliary and participle: elle avait déjà réservé, elle n’avait jamais voyagé, elle n’avait pas encore payé.
Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn
| Meaning | French | At that past moment |
|---|---|---|
| already | Elle avait déjà répondu. | Her reply was complete. |
| never | Elle n’avait jamais répondu. | There had been no reply in the relevant earlier period. |
| not yet | Elle n’avait pas encore répondu. | Her reply was still pending. |
| again | Elle avait encore oublié. | She had forgotten another time. |
The tense supplies the past viewpoint; the adverb adds the detail. Compare j’ai déjà réservé (looking back from now) and j’avais déjà réservé (looking back from a past moment). In the story, the booking, payment and previous experiences are all viewed from the evening Léa boarded the train.
Four objects in Léa’s journey
Find:
How do déjà, jamais and pas encore work with the plus-que-parfait?
The verb groups are supplied, so focus on the adverb. Write jamais after the printed negative auxiliary. In the two “not yet” gaps, enter the complete group pas encore. A pending action may happen later; the following sentences tell you which actions Léa eventually completed.
Une première nuit en train
Vendredi soir, Léa est montée dans le train de nuit pour Marseille. Elle avait (already) réservé sa place le lundi précédent. Elle avait (already) payé son billet en ligne. Elle n’avait (never) voyagé dans un train de nuit : c’était sa première fois.
Avant le départ, elle a appelé sa sœur. À ce moment-là, elle n’avait (not yet) trouvé sa place. Quelques minutes plus tard, elle s’est assise près de la fenêtre. Elle a posé sa valise et ouvert son carnet. Elle avait (already) noté l’adresse de son amie à Marseille.
Elle a voulu envoyer un message, mais elle avait (again) oublié de charger son téléphone. Cela lui arrivait souvent ! Elle a alors branché son chargeur. À vingt-deux heures, elle n’avait (not yet) réglé son réveil. Elle l’a réglé pour six heures, puis elle s’est couchée. Avant cette nuit-là, elle n’avait (never) dormi dans un train.
Read it in English
On Friday evening, Léa boarded the night train to Marseille. She had already reserved her seat the previous Monday. She had already paid for her ticket online. She had never travelled on a night train: it was her first time.
Before departure, she called her sister. At that moment, she had not yet found her seat. A few minutes later, she sat by the window. She put down her suitcase and opened her notebook. She had already written down her friend’s address in Marseille.
She wanted to send a message, but she had forgotten to charge her phone again. That often happened to her! She then plugged in her charger. At ten o’clock, she had not yet set her alarm. She set it for six, then went to bed. Before that night, she had never slept on a train.