passé composé
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
[edit] French
[edit] Etymology
passé 'the past' (from the past participle of passer 'to happen') + composé 'compound' (the past participle of composer 'to compose, compound'; because, unlike the imparfait and passé simple, which use endings and/or root flexion, it uses an auxiliary verb and the (inflected) past participle) - both ultimately from Latin
[edit] Noun
passé composé m. (plural passés composés)
- A past tense in French grammar, to express a completed ('perfect') action
