The past historic subjunctive: que je fusse, qu’il fût

What you’re looking at: the subjonctif imparfait

The forms in the table (e.g., que je chantasse, qu’il choisît, que vous crussiez) belong to the imperfect subjunctive.

• Main use: formal/literary French, especially when the main verb is in a past tense.
• Reality check: in modern spoken French it’s usually replaced by the present subjunctive.
• Why learn it? you’ll meet it in reports, formal writing, and careful speech; it also improves your control of French “sequence of tenses”.

When do French speakers choose it (in formal style)?

Think: past trigger + que + subjunctive.

• Formal: Je voulais qu’il fît un effort.
• Common today: Je voulais qu’il fasse un effort.

How to build it fast (the practical recipe)

Use the passé simple stem, then add imperfect-subjunctive endings.

1. Take the verb in passé simple (3rd person singular is often the easiest reference).
2. Remove the ending to keep the stem.
3. Add the endings: -sse, -sses, -̂t, -ssions, -ssiez, -ssent.

The endings: what you should actually notice

• Je / Tu / Il: -sse, -sses, -̂t
  • que je chantasse, que tu chantasses, qu’il chantât
  • que je choisisse, que tu choisisses, qu’il choisît
  • que je crusse, que tu crusses, qu’il crût
• Nous / Vous / Ils: -ssions, -ssiez, -ssent (very regular once you have the stem).
• The accent matters: choisît, chantât, crût are the “he/she/it” forms; the circumflex is a spelling marker you must keep.

Common learner traps (and how to self-correct)

• Trap 1: forgetting que
  • Je voulais il fit un effort.
  • Je voulais qu’il fît un effort.
• Trap 2: mixing it with the conditional
  • Je voulais qu’il ferait un effort. (wrong structure)
  • Je voulais qu’il fît un effort. / Je voulais qu’il fasse un effort.
• Trap 3: using the right idea but wrong register
  • Formal writing: Il exigeait que nous cotisassions dès la fin de la période d’essai.
  • Everyday French: Il exigeait que nous cotisions… (present subjunctive is common here)
• Trap 4: “croire” forms look strange
  • Present subjunctive: que vous croyiez
  • Imperfect subjunctive (formal): que vous crussiez

Quick decision guide: which subjunctive should I use?

1. Is your style formal / literary (report, formal letter, careful narrative)?
   • Yes → after a past trigger, consider subjonctif imparfait.
   • No → use subjonctif présent (most natural today).
2. Is there a trigger verb expressing will, request, doubt, fear, necessity? (e.g., vouloir, exiger, souhaiter, demander, douter, craindre, insister)
   • If yes, you’re likely in subjunctive territory.

Mini self-check (before you move on)

• Can you spot the structure: past verb + que + subjunctive?
• Can you transform quickly?
  • Je voulais qu’il fasse… → Je voulais qu’il fît…
  • Ils craignaient que je chante faux… → Ils craignaient que je chantasse faux…
  • La responsable souhaitait qu’il choisisse… → La responsable souhaitait qu’il choisît…
• If a form looks “too fancy”, ask: Do I need formal style here? If not, use the present subjunctive confidently.