Stage 2 · A1+ / A2
Level A1+ / A2
The recent past
Form and use the French recent past for actions that have just happened.
1. Objective
By the end, you will form the recent past with venir de + infinitive.
2. I discover
Compare: Je finis. / Je viens de finir. Does the second sentence place the action just before or after now?
3. I understand
The recent past describes something that has just happened. It uses present-tense venir + de + infinitive: je viens de finir, nous venons d’arriver. Before a vowel, de contracts to d’.
je viens de finirtu viens de mangerelle vient d’arrivernous venons de partirvous venez de téléphonerils viennent de sortir
Watch out
The recent past does not use a past participle: use an infinitive after de/d’.
4. Guided practice
5. Independent practice
6. I write / I speak
Write three new sentences using the target feature. For each, briefly explain why your choice is correct.
7. Check my learning
8. What I remember
Recent past = present-tense venir + de/d’ + infinitive. Je viens de partir. Elle vient d’arriver.
9. Now I can…
- I can explain the criterion behind my answer.
- I can apply the feature in a new sentence.
