Passé simple and passé antérieur
Mastering narration: il eut fini, il fut parti.
⚡Key points
Passé antérieur: formation
The passé antérieur = the passé simple of the auxiliary (eut / fut) + the past participle. It is a literary tense expressing an action immediately prior to another in the passé simple. It pairs with the passé simple, as the pluperfect pairs with the imparfait.
finir (avoir) / partir (être)
| il / elle | eut fini / fut parti(e) | had finished / left |
| ils / elles | eurent fini / furent parti(e)s | had finished / left |
| je (rare) | eus fini / fus parti(e) | I had finished / left |
| nous | eûmes fini / fûmes parti(e)s | we had finished / left |
| être (avoir été) | il eut été | he had been |
Use: anteriority
The passé antérieur stands in a time clause after quand, lorsque, dès que, aussitôt que, à peine… que, après que, while the main action is in the passé simple: Dès qu’il eut terminé, il partit. In modern French it is replaced by the pluperfect or the passé surcomposé.
Examples (narration)
quand + passé antérieur
Quand il eut fini de parler, un silence tomba.
à peine… que
À peine fut-elle sortie qu’il se mit à pleuvoir.
dès que
Dès qu’ils furent arrivés, la fête commença.
💡⚠️ passé antérieur ≠ pluperfect
Excerpt: narration
Narrator: When he had closed the door, silence enveloped him. | He had hardly sat down when there was a knock. | As soon as she had understood, she changed her attitude. | When all had left, he remained alone with his thoughts.