Form the imperfect: nous-stem + endings
The imperfect (l'imparfait) describes an ongoing, habitual or descriptive past action. It is a one-word tense. Formation, for almost every verb: take the nous form of the present, drop -ons, add -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. So parler → je parlais, finir (nous finissons) → je finissais. Only être breaks the rule — its stem is the irregular ét- (j'étais, nous étions). Full table in the note.
Three uses: description, habit, background
The imperfect has three main uses, all with no clear end point: (1) description — weather, appearance, feelings: il faisait beau, j'étais content(e); (2) habitual/repeated action ("used to"): tous les étés, nous allions en France; (3) background action interrupted by a completed event: je regardais la télé quand le téléphone a sonné. It also follows si in conditionals (si j'avais de l'argent…) — that tense choice stays examiner-marked.
Drawn from real examiner reports.
Imperfect used for a completed action
The imperfect describes an ongoing state or a habit — it does not report a single completed action. A frequent error uses it where the perfect is needed for a one-off event: je suis allé(e) (I went — one trip) vs j'allais (I used to go). Time markers help: hier, la semaine dernière → perfect; tous les jours, d'habitude, quand j'étais petit(e) → imperfect.
Examiner digest (0520), Verb tense/person errors: j'allais/j'allé used instead of je suis allé(e) when a perfect (single completed arrival) was required — an imperfect wrongly substituted (s22 Speaking Card 1 & 6; w22 Speaking Card 1).
Echoing the vous ending instead of je
In the Speaking exam a formal question uses vous, but you must answer as je — not echo the ending you heard. This applies to the imperfect too: to Que faisiez-vous… ? answer je faisais, not je faisiez; to préfériez-vous answer je préférais, not je préfériez. Always re-conjugate to your own pronoun; never leave a -iez ending on je.
Examiner digest (0520), Verb tense/person errors: on formal (vous) role-play cards candidates echo the vous form instead of conjugating to je — flagged every sitting (s22, w22, s23, w23 Speaking).
Missing the -ger/-cer soft-sound change
Verbs in -ger (manger) and -cer (commencer) keep their soft sound when the ending starts with -a-. In the imperfect that hits je, tu, il, ils (-ais/-ait/-aient) but not nous/vous (-ions/-iez): je mangeais — BUT nous mangions; je commençais — BUT nous commencions. Writing je mangais (no -e-) or nous mangeions (extra -e-) are common slips.
être's imperfect stem is ét-, not somm-
Every verb takes its imperfect stem from the nous present — except être. Its stem is the irregular ét- (j'étais, tu étais, il était, nous étions, vous étiez, ils étaient), NOT derived from nous sommes. A common slip is inventing a stem like somm- from sommes; learn ét- by heart. Every other verb, even irregular ones, does follow the nous-stem rule.
Take the stem from the nous form
For a verb whose nous present is irregular, take the stem from that nous form — do not guess. faire → nous faisons → stem fais-, giving je faisais (often misspelt fesais). Likewise avoir → nous avons → av- → j'avais; aller → nous allons → all- → j'allais. The endings stay regular; only the stem needs care.
Imperfect is not simply "was ...-ing"
"Was/were + -ing" is a rough guide, not a reliable test. "I was 12 when…" is an ongoing state needing the imperfect (j'avais douze ans). "I was watching TV when the phone rang" needs the imperfect for the ongoing action (je regardais) but the perfect for the interrupting event (a sonné). Judge by the shape, not the English wording.
Examiner digest (0520), Listening: different time frames within one sentence are consistently missed, e.g. je les adorais / maintenant ils m'ennuient (s22 Listening 11 Q19).
Two steps: nous-stem, then endings
Build any imperfect form in two steps: (1) find the nous present stem — drop -ons (faisons → fais-; être is the exception, ét-); (2) add -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. Then check the -ger/-cer families keep their soft sound before -a- (mangeais).
Choose imperfect vs perfect by shape
Before writing a past verb, decide its shape: description, habit or ongoing background → imperfect; a single completed event → perfect (topic 1.4). Markers steer you: tous les jours, d'habitude → imperfect; hier, une fois → perfect.
Set the scene in the imperfect
In Writing, use the imperfect to set the scene (il faisait beau, j'étais content(e)), then switch to the perfect for the events that happened. Handling both tenses correctly in one piece is rewarded under Range — a text told entirely in one tense caps that mark.
The imperfect (l'imparfait) is the tense for description, habit and ongoing background action in the past — "it was raining", "we used to go", "I was reading" — with no sense of a completed, one-off event. It is a simple (one-word) tense, unlike the perfect.
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