Français — Passé simple
The passé simple is a literary past tense used almost only in writing (novels, tales, history). In speech it is replaced by the passé composé, so you mainly need to recognize it: il parla means the same as il a parlé.
How it works
Endings depend on the verb group. -er verbs take -ai, -as, -a, -âmes, -âtes, -èrent (il parla, ils parlèrent). -ir and -re verbs take -is, -is, -it, -îmes, -îtes, -irent (il finit, il vendit). Many common verbs are irregular and built on a special stem, often ending in -us or -ins: être → il fut, avoir → il eut, faire → il fit, venir → il vint.
Examples
| Verb (infinitive) | il/elle — passé simple | Spoken equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| parler (-er) | il parla | il a parlé |
| donner (-er) | elle donna | elle a donné |
| finir (-ir) | il finit | il a fini |
| vendre (-re) | il vendit | il a vendu |
| être | il fut | il a été |
| avoir | il eut | il a eu |
| faire | il fit | il a fait |
| venir | il vint | il est venu |
Good to know
Do not confuse forms: for -er verbs, il parla (passé simple) vs il parlait (imparfait) vs il parlera (futur). The nous/vous forms carry a circumflex (nous parlâmes, vous finîtes) and sound archaic — you will almost never produce them yourself. Focus on recognizing the 3rd-person forms il/elle and ils/elles, which is where the tense actually appears in texts.