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WHAT IS IT?
The past tense enables you to talk or write about things which happened in the past.
There are 2 basic past tenses. If you do not know the difference between the perfect and the imperfect, click here.
HOW TO DO THE PERFECT TENSE:
For most er verbs you must use the verb 'To have' in the present tense and add the verb, removing the ending and adding -é . (The verb 'to have' now is called an auxilliary as it helps makes another tense… but that's nothing to worry about).
Example:
I ate = J'ai (I have) mangé (manger-er+é)
I spoke = j'ai parlé
She swam = Elle a nagé
In this case the ending is always é, it does not matter whether we speak about a man, two men, a woman or more than one woman. In other words, singular, plural male or female...the ending is é!
Sometimes however you do not use 'to have' but 'to be'. There is no real reason for that so there again, it's nothing to understand, you just have to accept it. In practice there are only 13 verbs which need 'to be' instead of 'to have'. These are: Monter, Rester, Venir, Arriver, Naitre,Sortir, Tomber, Retourner, Aller, Mourir,Perdre, Entrer, Descendre. This list is sometimes called the MR VANS TRAMPED list using the first letter of each verb (your teacher might have another name for it, but the verbs are the same!).
Example:
I fell = Je suis (use suis and not have because 'to fall' is in the list) tombé
I stayed = je suis resté
She stayed = Elle est restée (add e because 'she' is female)
We stayed= Nous sommes restés (add 's' because plural)
The girls stayed= Elles sont restées (add 'es' because female plural)
NOTES:
1 BEWARE THE CHANGE OF ENDINGS WITH 'TO BE'.
2 THIS RULE IS ONLY GOOD FOR -ER VERBS! FOR OTHERS YOU NEED YOUR DICTIONARY!
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