Le Passé Simple (Indicatif)

French Historic Past

Le Passé Simple is the simple past tense of the indicative mood. It's used to express actions that were completed in the past.

The passé simple is the direct equivalent of the English simple past (I did), but is found almost exclusively in literature and other French writings. In spoken French, the passé simple has been replaced by the passé composé.

For example

Quand tu rencontras Sarah, elle avait dix-huit ans.When you met Sarah, she was eighteen.

Les compagnons s'arrêtèrent pour la nuit.The companions stopped for the night.

See also: French Passé and All French tenses

Thinking...