L'imparfait
The past tense for habits, descriptions, and ongoing background actions.
The rule
The imparfait (imperfect) describes ongoing, repeated, or background actions in the past — it answers "what was happening" or "what used to happen," as opposed to the passé composé's completed, one-time events.
It's formed by taking the nous form of the present tense, dropping -ons, and adding the imperfect endings: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. So parler → nous parlons → je parlais.
The imparfait is used for habits (Quand j'étais petit, je jouais dehors), descriptions (Il faisait beau), and ongoing actions interrupted by another event (Je dormais quand le téléphone a sonné).
Examples
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Quand j'étais enfant, j'habitais à Lyon.When I was a child, I lived in Lyon.
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Il faisait beau ce jour-là.The weather was nice that day.
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Nous jouions au foot tous les samedis.We used to play soccer every Saturday.
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Elle lisait quand je suis arrivé.She was reading when I arrived.
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Vous parliez trop fort.You were talking too loudly.
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Ils avaient un chien.They had a dog.
Common mistakes
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J'ai mangé souvent des pâtes quand j'étais petit.Je mangeais souvent des pâtes quand j'étais petit.
Repeated habitual actions in the past use the imparfait, not the passé composé.
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Je dormais quand le téléphone sonnait.Je dormais quand le téléphone a sonné.
The interrupting one-time event uses the passé composé, while the background action stays in the imparfait.
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Nous parlons français quand nous étions jeunes.Nous parlions français quand nous étions jeunes.
Don't confuse the imparfait "nous parlions" with the present tense "nous parlons" — the imperfect always has an -i- before the ending.
