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A2BeginnerVerbs · Point 14 / 40

c'était, il y avait, il faisait, j'étais, on était, je pensais

The imparfait describes the background of the past, not the precise action.

FormMeaning
c'était“c’était” describes how something was.
il y avait“il y avait” describes what was there.
il faisait“il faisait” describes what the weather was like.
j'étais“j’étais” describes the speaker’s state or occupation at the time.
on était“on était” describes a shared situation in the past.
je pensais“je pensais” describes what was on someone’s mind at that moment.

The imparfait describes the background of the past: what it was like, what there was, what you thought. The passé composé tells the event; the imparfait paints the situation around it.

In context

Examples from our dialogues

Lines taken from our dialogues. Listen to them, then open the full dialogue to hear them in a real situation.

Watch out

Common mistakes

Mistakes you will often hear, and the right way to say it.

  • Hier, ça a été très froid et il y a eu beaucoup de neige.Hier, il faisait très froid et il y avait beaucoup de neige.

    To describe the weather or the atmosphere, use the imparfait, not the passé composé. The passé composé is for the event: “Hier, j’ai pris l’autobus.”

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Related readings

Short texts where this point comes up. Read them to see it inside a story.