In addition to le passé composé (perfect or compound past tense), you can also use l'imparfait (imperfect tense) to talk about things that occurred in the past. So, when should you choose l'imparfait over le passé composé? Let's explore both tenses.

Before we embark on the specific uses of l'imparfait, let's find out how to form this past tense. Just take the nous (we) form of the present tense, as in nous faisons (we do/are doing), remove the -ons, and add the ending -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, or -aient. So, nous faisons (we do/are doing) becomes nous faisions (we were doing/used to do). Margaux and Manon will show you how to conjugate the rest of the verb faire in the imparfait:

Je faisais... Tu faisais. Il ou elle faisait.

I was doing... You were doing. He or she was doing.

Nous faisions. Vous faisiez.

We were doing. You [pl. or formal] were doing.

Ils ou elles faisaient.

They [masc.] or they [fem.] were doing.

Captions 31-33, Margaux et Manon - Conjugaison du verbe faire

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Now that you know how to form the imperfect tense, let's discuss how to use it. Usually, l'imparfait indicates ongoing actions in the past that have a stronger connection to the present than le passé composé, which describes a completed action. In his conversation with Lea in the video below, Lionel uses the imperfect form tu me parlais (you were telling me) as a subtle cue that he wants to hear more about the animals in the park. It's an invitation to Lea to elaborate:

Tu me parlais aussi tout à l'heure de la

You were also telling me earlier about the

présence d'animaux dans ces parcs.

presence of animals in these parks.

Caption 43, Lea & Lionel L - Le parc de Bercy - Part 2

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If Lionel wanted to say something like “you already told me earlier” and then changed the subject, he would have used passé composé:

Ah oui, tu m’en as déjà parlé tout à l’heure.

Oh yes, you already told me about that earlier.

But l'imparfait is not only used to evoke an ongoing action drifting into the present. It's also the ideal tense for talking about things you used to do or describing repeated actions. In the following video, Claire remembers how elle allait (she used to go) to the park with her daughter:

Oh,  j'y allais beaucoup avec ma fille, il y a quelques années.

Oh, I used to go there a lot with my daughter a few years ago.

Caption 47, Claire et Philippe - La campagne

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L'imparfait is very helpful for setting a background and creating a mood. In his poem "Barbara," Jacques Prévert sets the scene by describing the incessant rain in the city of Brest, which was destroyed during the Second World War:

Il pleuvait sans cesse sur Brest ce jour-là

It was raining nonstop in Brest that day

Caption 2, Le saviez-vous? - "Barbara" de Jacques Prévert

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Later on, the poet uses the imparfait again to describe the romantic encounter that follows:

Tu souriais

You were smiling

Et moi je souriais de même

And I smiled back

Captions 9-10, Le saviez-vous? - "Barbara" de Jacques Prévert

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(Note that we used the perfect tense in English for je souriais [I smiled]. The French imparfait does not always correspond to the English imperfect, as we'll discuss further below.)

Prévert then adds more to the background: a man who s’abritait (was taking shelter) under a porch and interrupted the scene with a shout. Whereas the imparfait is used for background or habitual actions, single actions interrupting an ongoing action are usually expressed in passé composé:

Un homme sous un porche s'abritait

A man was taking shelter under a porch

Et il a crié ton nom

And he shouted your name

Captions 17-18, Le saviez-vous? - "Barbara" de Jacques Prévert

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While all verbs can be conjugated in both the passé composé and the imparfait, certain verbs by their very nature express a state of mind, an attitude, a condition, or a desire, thus lending themselves better to the use of the imparfait. These verbs include avoir (to have), croire (to believe), désirer (to desire), espérer (to hope), être (to be), penser (to think), pouvoir (to be able to), savoir (to know), vouloir (to want). Note that some of these verbs don’t usually take the imperfect in English. For example, we can say on savait, but we don’t really say “we were knowing” in English. In the video below, on ne savait pas translates as "we didn't know":

On ne savait pas que le marché de Noël ouvrait aujourd'hui

We didn't know that the Christmas market was opening today

Caption 8, Alsace 20 - Ouverture du marché de Noël de Colmar

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In another example using the verb penser (to think), the imperfect form is necessary for expressing repetition in French, but not in English:

Je pensais souvent à toi.

I often thought of you.

Caption 38, Le Jour où tout a basculé - Ma femme est-elle réellement morte ?

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However, just like in English, when referring to a completed action, we switch to passé composé in French. In the example below, the action was completed hier (yesterday), hence the use of the perfect tense (j’ai pensé). So, paying attention to adverbs in French can help you choose the correct tense:

J’ai pensé à toi hier.

I thought of you yesterday.

In some rare cases, a verb's meaning can change depending on what tense it's in. For example, the verb connaître (to know) usually means “to know” in the imparfait but "to meet" in the passé composé:

Je l'avais fréquenté pendant plusieurs années et je le connaissais.

I had socialized with him for several years, and I knew him.

Caption 63, Le Jour où tout a basculé - Mes parents se préparent à la fin du monde

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J'ai connu Gérard y a une dizaine d'années.

I met Gérard about ten years ago.

Caption 39, Le Jour où tout a basculé - J'ai escroqué mon assurance !

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In the first example, the speaker uses the imparfait to describe an old acquaintance she has known for a long time—something in the past that has an effect on the present. In the second example, we're dealing with a singular event that can't be repeated, when the speaker first met Gérard. So the passé composé is in order here. 

Sometimes certain grammatical structures dictate which tense you should use. For example, to describe hypothetical situations, we use the construction si + imparfait. Zaz uses this construction throughout her song "Si" (If):

Si j'étais l'amie du bon Dieu

If I were the good Lord's friend

Caption 1, Zaz - Si

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Now that you’re familiar with the imparfait and passé composé, why not write your own story in the past tense using both forms? Yabla videos are at your disposal for inspiration.

Who has not gazed at le ciel (the sky) to check the weather or enjoy a sunset or a sunrise? Indeed, the sky can take on many colors, from somber gray to magnificent sunset-red. There are many ways, colors, and expressions to describe the wild blue yonder. Poets, songwriters, weather forecasters, and ordinary people are all adept at describing le ciel. So, let's join them and explore some sky-related vocabulary. But first, let us find out where le ciel (the sky) is…

In this video, sweet cartoon character Piggeldy wants to know where le ciel (the sky) begins, and he asks his older brother Frédéric to take him there:

Piggeldy voulait savoir où commence le ciel.

Piggeldy wanted to know where the sky begins.

Caption 1, Piggeldy et Frédéric Le ciel

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Piggeldy’s mission to reach the heavens (on foot, no less) is bound to fail because, as the saying goes, la limite, c'est le ciel (the sky is the limit):

La limite, c'est le ciel, tu sais de qui c'est

The sky is the limit, you know whose it is

Caption 53, Disiz la Peste Dans tes rêves

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Though it's impossible to walk up to le ciel, it is certainly possible to gaze at it and enjoy its bright blue hue. In his humorous song, "Cha Cha du Marin," singer Cré Tonnerre sings about a ciel bleu (blue sky) that reflects his happy mood:

Tout heureux, tout amoureux, tout bleu comme le ciel bleu

All happy, all in love, all blue as the blue sky

Caption 26, Cré Tonnerre Cha Cha du Marin

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In his video about dog training, trusty guide Lionel also enthuses over a ciel radieux (glorious sky) as he finishes his visit to a canine club:

Nous allons prendre congé sous ce ciel radieux, bleu-azur.

We're going to take our leave under this glorious, azure-blue sky.

Captions 52-53, Lionel au club canin - Part 5

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And in Metz, Lionel enjoys another ciel estival (summer sky):

Nous sommes donc ici toujours à Metz, sous un ciel estival, ciel bleu

So we're still here in Metz under a summer sky, a blue sky

Caption 1, Lionel à Metz - Part 2

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While un ciel estival is a blue summer sky, un ciel gris (a gray sky) usually means drab winter days. And yet, people like Sophie and Patrice see beauty in les dégradés du gris (the shades of gray) in the Parisian skies:

Entre les dégradés de gris du ciel et les dégradés de gris des toits c'est vrai c'est super beau, hein?

Between the shades of gray in the sky and the shades of gray of the roofs, it's true it's super beautiful, huh?

Captions 9-11, Sophie et Patrice Paris, c'est gris

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Still, most people seem to prefer un ciel dégagé (a clear sky) over un ciel couvert (an overcast sky) or un ciel nuageux (a cloudy sky):

Cette nuit le ciel est dégagé avec huit degrés pour les températures... Et puis pour la journée de jeudi un ciel couvert avec quinze degrés le matin

Tonight the sky is clear with eight-degree temperatures... And then for daytime on Thursday an overcast sky with fifteen degrees in the morning

Caption 9, 14, Grand Lille TV Prévisions Météo (Juin)

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Un ciel dégagé est plus agréable qu’un ciel nuageux.

A clear sky is more pleasant than a cloudy sky.

In any case, not everyone is as fond of gray skies as Sophie and Patrice. Most would agree with the speaker in the video below, who describes gray skies as maussade (gloomy) and pluvieux (rainy):

Malheureusement avec un ciel maussade et un peu pluvieux...

Unfortunately under a gloomy and somewhat rainy sky...

Caption 15, Lionel Le club de foot de Nancy - Part 1

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Sometimes the sky is bleak and pale instead of gray, and when it comes to describing pale skies, who does it better than renowned poet Charles Baudelaire? In his poem "À une passante" (To a Passersby), Baudelaire depicts a bleak sky with the adjective livide, which means “pale” or even “deathly pale." (Unlike its English cognate, the French livide does not mean “livid/angry.")

Dans son œil, ciel livide où germe l'ouragan

From her eye, pale sky where a hurricane grows

Caption 41, Le saviez-vous? "À une passante" de Charles Baudelaire

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Still on a bleak note, singer Zaz portrays the sky in an even gloomier way:

Je mettrais du ciel en misère

I would put some sky in misery

Caption 9, Zaz Si

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In yet another sad song, singer Lesieur laments over un ciel sans avenir (a sky without a future), projecting even sadder feelings, a sense of hopelessness into a sky that refuses to rain:

Un ciel qui vous oublie... -Un ciel sans avenir

A sky that's forgetting you... -A sky with no future

Caption 26, Lesieur Des Ricochets

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Thankfully, le ciel does not always spell gloom. What could be a happier sight than un arc-en-ciel (a rainbow, literally an “arc-in-the-sky”)? In his humorous song, Oldelaf sings the praises of the colors of the rainbow in his own unique way:

Et j'avoue que j'aime aussi / Toutes les couleurs de l'arc-en-ciel / Le rouge, le jaune, le vert-de-gris / Le pourpre, le mauve, même le bleu ciel

And I'll admit that I also like / All the colors of the rainbow / Red, yellow, verdigris / Purple, mauve, even sky blue

Captions 30-33, Oldelaf J'aime les bêtes

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If un arc-en-ciel is close to a heavenly sight, le ciel is most certainly heavenly. It's synonymous with “heaven” when talking about the afterlife:

...et que le roi est leur meilleur guide sur terre en attendant d'aller au ciel.

...and that the king is their best guide on earth while they wait to go to heaven.

Captions 45-46, d'Art d'Art Vitraux de la Sainte-Chapelle

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Whatever you may see or choose to see in le ciel, you are now armed with extra vocabulary that will enable you to better paint the sky in words—French words, of course—or just talk about the weather. Thank you for gazing at le ciel (the sky) or les cieux (the skies) with Yabla!