French plus-que-parfait: a formation cheat sheet

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated 13 October 2026 · About the library

Build avais fini and était partie with a compact reference: both auxiliaries, common participles, agreement and the earlier-past viewpoint.

In short

Form the plus-que-parfait with the imparfait of avoir or être plus a past participle: j’avais fini, elle était partie. It looks back from a past moment to something earlier: quand je suis arrivé, elle était déjà partie.

Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learn

A traveller watches a train recede beyond a quiet platform. — The train était déjà parti when the traveller arrived. Illustration: Atelier

Le plus-que-parfait · formation

1 · Start at a past moment

The later event gives you a place to look back from. Here finding work is the reference point, and finishing the course is earlier.

Elle avait terminé sa formation quand elle a trouvé ce travail.She had finished her training when she found this job.

2 · Change the auxiliary, keep the participle

Start with a familiar passé composé. Change its present auxiliary into the imparfait. The past participle stays the same, with the same agreement rules.

j’ai compris → j’avais compris	I understood → I had understood
elle est venue → elle était venue	she came → she had come

3 · Learn both auxiliary columns

The auxiliary carries the person ending. Nous needs avions or étions, even when the participle looks the same for every person.

j’avais · j’étais	I had · I was
tu avais · tu étais	you had · you were
il avait · elle était	he had · she was
nous avions · nous étions	we had · we were
vous aviez · vous étiez	you had · you were
ils avaient · elles étaient	they had · they were

4 · Keep the usual auxiliary

Most verbs take avoir. Partir, arriver and venir take être in these uses. Pronominal verbs also take être: elle s’était levée.

Nous avions appris le français avant notre départ.We had learnt French before our departure.

Elles étaient arrivées avant le début du cours.They had arrived before the start of the class.

5 · Use a participle, not an infinitive

Regular examples: parler → parlé, finir → fini, vendre → vendu. Keep useful irregulars together: faire → fait, lire → lu, prendre → pris, voir → vu, écrire → écrit.

Il avait lu le message avant la réunion.He had read the message before the meeting.

6 · Check agreement and context

With ordinary être verbs, the participle agrees with the subject. With avoir, a preceding direct object can trigger agreement. Pronominal verbs have their own object checks.

Elles étaient parties.They had left.

Les décisions qu’elle avait prises étaient difficiles.The decisions she had made were difficult.

How do you form the plus-que-parfait?

Je cherchais une nouvelle formation. J’avais déjà quitté mon emploi.

I was looking for a new training course. I had already left my job.

The search supplies the past viewpoint. The earlier departure explains that situation.

The past reference can come from the conversation too. J’avais déjà quitté mon emploi is complete when both people are discussing that period. The tense links two moments; it can look back a few minutes or several years.