In French, when a verb is conjugated in a compound tense, adverbs take a specific position.
The position of adverbs with compound tenses in French
Look at these sentences:
In compounds tenses (e.g. past involving'avoir' or 'être' as auxiliary verbs), some adverbs are placed between the auxiliary verb and the past participle.
These include: assez, bien, beaucoup, bientôt, déjà, encore, enfin, mal, mieux, souvent, toujours, trop, vite, ...
BUT
Certain adverbs of time and manner can be placed either AT THE END or AT THE START of the sentence:
e.g. hier, aujourd'hui, avant-hier, après, autrefois, ... (and some adverbs ending in -ment for emphasis)
but you would not say "Nous sommes hier allés à Marseille." nor "Nous sommes allés hier à Marseille."
AND
Adverbs of place and certain adverbs of time usually FOLLOW the past participle:
e.g. tard, tôt, ... and some adverbs ending in -ment
Want to make sure your French sounds confident? We’ll map your knowledge and give you free lessons to focus on your gaps and mistakes. Start your Braimap today »
Learn more about these related French grammar topics
Examples and resources
