Hier (Yesterday): Recent Past

Learning ObjectivesI can talk about what I did yesterday.I can form the passé composé (past tense) [pah-say kom-poh-ZAY] with the verb 'avoir' (to have) [ah-VWAR] for verbs ending in -er.I can recognize and use the past participles of common verbs like manger (to eat) [mahn-ZHAY], jouer (to play) [zhoo-AY], and regarder (to watch) [ruh-gar-DAY].Imagine your friend asks you: « Qu'est-ce que tu as fait hier? (What did you do yesterday?) [kes-kuh too ah fay ee-YAIR] » 🤔 You want to tell them that you played hockey and ate poutine! 🏒🍟 In this lesson, you'll learn exactly how to do that.Real-World ApplicationsTelling your friends about your weekend.Writing in a journal about what you did.Telling your parents what you did at school.

To talk about the past, we need two parts: the verb avoir (to have) [ah-VWAR] and a participe passé (past participle) [par-tee-SEEP pah-SAY]. Here are a few verbs we'll be using.Verb (Infinitive)Past ParticipleExample in the Past Tensemanger (to eat) [mahn-ZHAY]mangé (eaten) [mahn-ZHAY]J'ai mangé une pomme. (I ate an apple.) [zhay mahn-ZHAY oon pohm] 🍎jouer (to play) [zhoo-AY]joué (played) [zhoo-AY]Tu as joué au soccer. (You played soccer.) [too ah zhoo-AY oh soccer] ⚽regarder (to watch) [ruh-gar-DAY]regardé (watched) [ruh-gar-DAY]Elle a regardé un film. (She watched a movie.) [ell ah ruh-gar-DAY uhn feelm] 🎬dessiner (to draw) [deh-see-NAY]dessiné (drawn) [deh-see-NAY]Nous avons dessiné un chat. (We drew a cat.) [noo zah-VOHN deh-see-NAY uhn shah] 🐱finir (to finish) [fee-NEER]fini (fin...

Pattern 1: The Passé Composé FormulaRule: To talk about a completed action in the past, we use the passé composé (past tense) [pah-say kom-poh-ZAY]. The formula is:Subject + avoir (in the present tense) + past participlePattern 2: Conjugating 'avoir'Rule: The verb avoir (to have) [ah-VWAR] changes depending on the subject. You'll need to memorize it.J'ai (I have) [zhay]Tu as (You have) [too ah]Il / Elle a (He / She has) [eel / ell ah]Nous avons (We have) [noo zah-VOHN]Vous avez (You have - formal/plural) [voo zah-VAY]Ils / Elles ont (They have) [eelz / ellz ohn]Pattern 3: Forming the Past ParticipleRule: For verbs that end in -er (like manger (to eat) [mahn-ZHAY]), we remove the -er and add -é.Example: manger → mangé