Introduction

Peindre means “to paint”, and this page covers exactly one thing: peindre in the passé composé. The passé composé is the tense French speakers reach for when they talk about something that happened and is finished — yesterday, this morning, last week. On this page you will find the full passé composé table for peindre, how the tense is formed for this verb, the situations where it is used, how it differs from the imperfect, worked examples, the mistakes learners make most often, an eight-question quiz with explained answers, and answers to the questions students ask about peindre in the passé composé. It is used every day in conversation, at work and at home. For example: “Il a peint la maison hier.” — “He has painted the house yesterday.” Everything on this page uses the forms of peindre exactly as they are conjugated in the passé composé, so you can trust every form you see here.

Peindre in the Passé Composé (Present Perfect) — full table

Person Form
je ai peint
tu as peint
il/elle a peint
nous avons peint
vous avez peint
ils/elles ont peint
Gerund: en peignant · Past participle: peint
The gerund is en peignant, which you use after en to say what is happening at the same time as the main action: “En peignant, je commence la journée.” — “While painting, I start the day.” The past participle is peint, which you use with avoir in the perfect tenses: ai peint is the present perfect, used for a completed action. Keep both forms in mind as you read the examples below, because the passé composé is only one part of how peindre is used.
Pronunciation is not listed on this page: the verified tables do not include IPA for peindre, so no pronunciation is given rather than an invented one.

How the passé composé of peindre is formed

The passé composé of peindre is formed with the present tense of avoir plus the past participle peint. The six forms are: j'ai peint, tu as peint, il a peint, nous avons peint, vous avez peint, ils ont peint. The participle never changes in this tense for peindre — it is peint for every person. peindre is irregular in present, passe-simple, present-subjunctive, imperative-affirmative, imperative-negative: those tenses do not follow the regular -re pattern, so learn them as a set rather than guessing from the infinitive. The other tenses follow the regular pattern. Because peindre takes avoir, the auxiliary is avoir in the present tense and the participle stays invariable here: ai peint, as peint, a peint all end in peint. Learn the auxiliary forms — ai, as, a, avons, avez, ont — once, and they work for every verb that takes avoir. The passé composé is the workhorse past tense of spoken French. It is the tense you will hear in conversation, in messages and in everyday stories, far more often than the passé simple, which belongs mainly to written and literary French. That is why this page exists on its own: the passé composé of peindre deserves a full page, not a footnote.

When to use the passé composé of peindre

The passé composé is not a single-purpose tense. Below are the five situations where you will use peindre in the passé composé most often. Each one comes with a real example, so read the rule, then say the example out loud.

1. Completed past actions

The passé composé describes an action that happened and is finished. The action has a clear end, and the sentence looks back at it from now. Example: “J'ai peint la maison la semaine dernière.” — “I have painted the house last week.”

2. The recent past

Use the passé composé for something that happened recently — this morning, yesterday, just now. It is the tense of news and updates. Example: “Tu as peint la maison ce matin.” — “You have painted the house this morning.”

3. Life experience

Use the passé composé to talk about what you have done in your life, with or without a time expression. It is the tense of experience, not of habit. Example: “Il a peint la maison avant la fête.” — “He has painted the house before the party.”

4. A sequence of past events

When you tell a story as a chain of finished events — first this happened, then that happened — each link in the chain takes the passé composé. Example: “Nous avons peint la maison.” — “We have painted the house.”

5. With time expressions

Time expressions such as hier, ce matin, la semaine dernière and l’année dernière point to the passé composé. Those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense. Example: “Vous avez peint la maison hier.” — “You have painted the house yesterday.”

Passé Composé vs Imperfect: how to choose

The closest tense to the passé composé is the imperfect, and learners mix them up constantly. The rule is simple: the passé composé describes one finished action in the past, while the imperfect describes an ongoing or habitual past action, or the background of a story. The three pairs below use the same verb, so the only thing that changes is the time frame — and with it, the tense. Notice how the passé composé sentences use words such as hier or soudain, while the imperfect sentences use tous les jours or avant. Those time words are your best clue when you are choosing a tense.

  • Passé Composé: “Il a peint la maison la semaine dernière.” — “He has painted the house last week.”
  • Imperfect: “Il peignait la maison à la maison.” — “He used to paint the house at home.”
  • The passé composé sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is a habit or a background state. Hier points to the passé composé, tous les jours in the past points to the imperfect.
  • Passé Composé: “J'ai peint la maison ce matin.” — “I have painted the house this morning.”
  • Imperfect: “Je peignais la maison ce matin.” — “I used to paint the house this morning.”
  • The passé composé sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is a habit or a background state. Hier points to the passé composé, tous les jours in the past points to the imperfect.
  • Passé Composé: “Tu as peint la maison avant la fête.” — “You have painted the house before the party.”
  • Imperfect: “Tu peignais la maison avec Paul.” — “You used to paint the house with Paul.”
  • The passé composé sentence is one finished event; the imperfect sentence is a habit or a background state. Hier points to the passé composé, tous les jours in the past points to the imperfect.

Example sentences: peindre in the passé composé

Read these eight sentences out loud. They cover all six persons, so by the end you will have seen every form in the table used in a real sentence. Pay attention to the words around the verb — the time expressions and the objects — because those are what make each sentence sound natural.

  1. “J'ai peint la maison la semaine dernière.” — “I have painted the house last week.”
  2. “Tu as peint la maison ce matin.” — “You have painted the house this morning.”
  3. “Il a peint la maison avant la fête.” — “He has painted the house before the party.”
  4. “Nous avons peint la maison.” — “We have painted the house.”
  5. “Vous avez peint la maison hier.” — “You have painted the house yesterday.”
  6. “Ils ont peint la maison la semaine dernière.” — “They have painted the house last week.”
  7. “J'ai peint la maison hier.” — “I have painted the house yesterday.”
  8. “Il a peint la maison avant la fête.” — “He has painted the house before the party.”

Common mistakes

These are the errors learners actually make with this verb in this tense. Each one shows the wrong version, the right version, and why the correction matters.

  • Wrong: “Je as peint la maison.” Right: “J'ai peint la maison hier.” Why: The je form is ai peint, not as peint. as peint is the tu form. Mixing the two persons is the most common error with this verb.
  • Wrong: “Nous ai peint la maison.” Right: “Nous avons peint la maison hier.” Why: Nous needs the nous form avons peint. ai peint belongs with je only. Learn the six forms as two groups — singular and plural — and the pattern becomes automatic.
  • Wrong: “J'ai peint la maison tous les jours.” Right: “Je peins la maison tous les jours.” Why: Tous les jours describes a routine, so the passé composé is wrong here. Use the present peins for something that happens every day.
  • Wrong: “Je peindre la maison.” Right: “J'ai peint la maison hier.” Why: The infinitive peindre never takes a subject. After je you need the conjugated form ai peint.

Quiz: test yourself

Choose the correct answer for each question, then check the answer key. Every answer is explained, so a wrong answer still teaches you something.

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

    • A) ont peint
    • B) avons peint
    • C) ai peint
    • D) a peint

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

    • A) peignisses
    • B) avais peint
    • C) peignes
    • D) as peint

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

    • A) as peint
    • B) avez peint
    • C) avons peint
    • D) a peint

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

    • A) ai peint
    • B) avons peint
    • C) aurions peint
    • D) avez peint

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

    • A) avez peint
    • B) aviez peint
    • C) peigniez
    • D) ont peint

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

    • A) ont peint
    • B) avons peint
    • C) peignent
    • D) peignissent

  7. What is the je form of peindre in the Present perfect (passé composé)?

    • A) aurais peint
    • B) aurai peint
    • C) ai peint
    • D) peindrais

  8. What is the tu form of peindre in the Present perfect (passé composé)?

    • A) peignis
    • B) peignisses
    • C) peignes
    • D) as peint

Answer key

  1. C) ai peint — the je form of peindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is ai peint. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  2. D) as peint — the tu form of peindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is as peint. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  3. D) a peint — the il/elle form of peindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is a peint. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  4. B) avons peint — the nous form of peindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is avons peint. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  5. A) avez peint — the vous form of peindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is avez peint. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  6. A) ont peint — the ils/elles form of peindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is ont peint. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  7. C) ai peint — the je form of peindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is ai peint. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.
  8. D) as peint — the tu form of peindre in the present perfect (passé composé) is as peint. The other options are forms of the same verb for different persons or tenses.

Frequently asked questions

What does peindre mean in English?

peindre means “to paint”. It is a non-reflexive, irregular verb.

How is the passé composé of peindre formed?

The passé composé is formed with the present tense of avoir plus the past participle peint: j'ai peint, tu as peint, il a peint, nous avons peint, vous avez peint, ils ont peint.

When do I use the passé composé instead of the imperfect?

Use the passé composé for one finished action in the past. Use the imperfect for an ongoing or habitual past action, or for background description. Hier points to the passé composé; tous les jours in the past points to the imperfect.

What are the gerund and past participle of peindre?

The gerund is en peignant and the past participle is peint.

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