Passé composé vs Imparfait

Thanh Tân T.B2Kwiziq community member

Passé composé vs Imparfait

Even though I've read and practiced a lot with them, I still can distinguish which is which, why in this story "Je voulais les garder" but not "J'ai voulu les garder". Please help me!

Asked 2 years ago
CélineNative French expert teacher in KwiziqCorrect answer

Bonjour Thanh Tân,

Here, the person is expressing a past opinion (vouloir = to want -> verb of opinion/desire) and therefore the verb will be in L'Imparfait in this context.

See here: Expressing opinions and describing with the imperfect tense in French (L'Imparfait)

I hope this is helpful.

Bonne journée !

Passé composé vs Imparfait

Even though I've read and practiced a lot with them, I still can distinguish which is which, why in this story "Je voulais les garder" but not "J'ai voulu les garder". Please help me!

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