Craindre Passé Composé Conjugation in French

The passé composé of craindre — “to fear” — is the tense you need for finished actions in the past: what you did yesterday, what happened last week, what has just finished. It is formed with avoir in the present + the past participle craint, so once you know the participle you can build every person. This page gives you the complete passé composé table for craindre, how it is formed, when to use it, how it differs from the imperfect, the mistakes learners make with it, and a quiz to check yourself. The first example shows it in action: “J'ai craint le noir la nuit hier.” — “I have feared the dark at night.”

Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for craindre, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

Passé Composé conjugation of craindre

Every form in the table below comes from VerbFlow’s verified conjugation tables for craindre. The passé composé is a compound tense: avoir in the present + the past participle craint. The participle never changes in the table below — the tables give the masculine singular form, and agreement is explained in the formation section.

Present perfect (passé composé) — craindre

Person Form
je ai craint
tu as craint
il/elle a craint
nous avons craint
vous avez craint
ils/elles ont craint

The gerund of craindre is en craignant and the past participle is craint. You need the participle for the perfect tenses and the gerund for constructions with en.

How the passé composé of craindre is formed

Take the present tense of the auxiliary avoir and add the past participle craint: je → ai craint, tu → as craint, il/elle → a craint, nous → avons craint, vous → avez craint, ils/elles → ont craint. So craindre gives ai craint, as craint, a craint, avons craint, avez craint, ont craint. Because the auxiliary is avoir, the past participle normally stays invariable: it does not agree with the subject. It agrees only with a preceding direct object, which is a more advanced rule — in the sentences on this page the participle stays craint. A note on the participle: craint is the only past participle for craindre in the verified tables. Do not invent a second participle, and do not borrow the participle of a similar verb.

When to use the passé composé of craindre

1. A finished event in the past

Use the passé composé for a finished event in the past. For example, with craindre: “J'ai craint le noir la nuit hier.” — “I have feared the dark at night.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

2. Something that has just happened

Use the passé composé for something that has just happened. For example, with craindre: “Tu as craint le noir la nuit ce matin.” — “You have feared the dark at night.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

3. A sequence of past events

Use the passé composé for a sequence of past events. For example, with craindre: “Il a craint le noir la nuit hier soir.” — “He has feared the dark at night.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

4. Life experience up to now

Use the passé composé for life experience up to now. For example, with craindre: “Nous avons craint le noir la nuit déjà.” — “We have feared the dark at night.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

5. A past event with a definite time

Use the passé composé for a past event with a definite time. For example, with craindre: “Vous avez craint le noir la nuit la semaine dernière.” — “You have feared the dark at night.” Notice how the time expression and the context, not just the verb form, tell you which rule applies.

Passé composé vs imperfect: craindre then and craindre now

The passé composé and the imperfect both talk about the past, but they are not interchangeable. The passé composé is for what happened and finished; the imperfect is for what was happening, or what used to happen. Compare the pairs below — the passé composé form comes from this page, the imperfect form from the full conjugation table.

  • Passé composé: “J'ai craint le noir la nuit hier.” — “I have feared the dark at night.”

  • Imperfect: “Je craignais le noir la nuit quand j’étais jeune.” — “When I was young, I used to fear the dark at night.”

  • Passé composé: “Tu as craint le noir la nuit hier.” — “You have feared the dark at night.”

  • Imperfect: “Tu craignais le noir la nuit quand j’étais jeune.” — “You used to fear the dark at night.”

  • Passé composé: “Nous avons craint le noir la nuit hier.” — “We have feared the dark at night.”

  • Imperfect: “Nous craignions le noir la nuit quand j’étais jeune.” — “We used to fear the dark at night.”

Example sentences: craindre in the passé composé

Six sentences using only the passé composé of craindre, with English translations. Read them aloud — saying the forms is the fastest way to fix them in memory.

  • “J'ai craint le noir la nuit hier.” — “I have feared the dark at night.”
  • “Tu as craint le noir la nuit ce matin.” — “You have feared the dark at night.”
  • “Il a craint le noir la nuit la semaine dernière.” — “He has feared the dark at night.”
  • “Nous avons craint le noir la nuit déjà.” — “We have feared the dark at night.”
  • “Vous avez craint le noir la nuit hier soir.” — “You have feared the dark at night.”
  • “Ils ont craint le noir la nuit ce week-end.” — “They have feared the dark at night.”

Common mistakes with craindre in the passé composé

Mistake 1: Using the wrong auxiliary

Wrong: “Je suis craint le noir la nuit.”

Right: “J'ai craint le noir la nuit.”

With craindre the passé composé takes avoir, not être. The correct form is ai craint.

Mistake 2: Using the present for a finished past event

Wrong: “Je crains le noir la nuit hier.”

Right: “J'ai craint le noir la nuit hier.”

Yesterday’s finished event needs the passé composé (ai craint), not the present.

Mistake 3: Using the imperfect for a single finished event

Wrong: “Je craignais le noir la nuit hier.” (for one finished event)

Right: “J'ai craint le noir la nuit hier.”

The imperfect describes background and habit. One finished event yesterday takes the passé composé.

Mistake 4: Adding agreement to the participle with avoir

Wrong: “Elle a crainte.” (no preceding direct object)

Right: “Elle a craint.”

With avoir the participle normally stays invariable. It agrees only with a preceding direct object.

Quiz: craindre in the passé composé

  1. What is the je form of craindre in the Present perfect (passé composé)?

    • A) as craint
    • B) avez craint
    • C) ai craint
    • D) a craint

  2. What is the tu form of craindre in the Present perfect (passé composé)?

    • A) ai craint
    • B) as craint
    • C) avons craint
    • D) a craint

  3. What is the il/elle form of craindre in the Present perfect (passé composé)?

    • A) avez craint
    • B) ont craint
    • C) ai craint
    • D) a craint

  4. What is the nous form of craindre in the Present perfect (passé composé)?

    • A) avez craint
    • B) a craint
    • C) avons craint
    • D) ont craint

  5. What is the vous form of craindre in the Present perfect (passé composé)?

    • A) ai craint
    • B) avons craint
    • C) avez craint
    • D) as craint

  6. What is the ils/elles form of craindre in the Present perfect (passé composé)?

    • A) ai craint
    • B) as craint
    • C) avez craint
    • D) ont craint

  7. Which auxiliary does craindre take in the passé composé?

    • A) être
    • B) avoir
    • C) faire
    • D) aller

  8. What is the past participle of craindre?

    • A) craint
    • B) en craignant
    • C) craignais
    • D) crains

Answer key

  1. C) ai craint — the je form of craindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is ai craint.
  2. B) as craint — the tu form of craindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is as craint.
  3. D) a craint — the il/elle form of craindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is a craint.
  4. C) avons craint — the nous form of craindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is avons craint.
  5. C) avez craint — the vous form of craindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is avez craint.
  6. D) ont craint — the ils/elles form of craindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is ont craint.
  7. B) avoir — craindre forms its compound tenses with avoir: ai craint.
  8. A) craint — the past participle of craindre is craint.

Frequently asked questions

How is the passé composé of craindre formed?

With avoir in the present + the past participle craint: ai craint, as craint, a craint, avons craint, avez craint, ont craint.

When do I use the passé composé of craindre?

Use it for recent past actions and completed events. The five usage rules above, with examples, cover the situations you will meet most often.

What is the difference between the passé composé and the imperfect?

The passé composé is for finished events (ai craint), while the imperfect is for background and habit (craignais). The contrast section above shows three pairs side by side.

Where can I see the full conjugation of craindre?

On the full conjugation page for craindre, which has every tense, plus examples and a longer quiz. The examples and quiz page has more sentences in context.

Practice drill

Say the six passé composé forms of craindre in order, without looking: ai craint, as craint, a craint, avons craint, avez craint, ont craint. Then write three sentences of your own — one about today, one about yesterday, one about tomorrow — using ai craint, craignais and craindrai. Check every form against the table above. When you can produce all six persons without looking, move on to the examples and quiz page.

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