Imparfait vs passé composé

John C.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

The word "toujours" is confusing here. Why doesn't Bastien respond in the imperfect to express his habitual actions and say "je faisais toujours comme ça" instead of saying "j'ai toujours fait comme ça..."? He has "always" left his clothes on the floor and still intends to do so. Shouldn't this scenario be expressed by the imperfect? Thanks for any help.

This question relates to:French writing exercise "Do you have any dirty clothes?"

Freeform Writing Exercise A2

Asked 4 years ago

Like0Answer1

CécileNative French expert teacher in KwiziqCorrect answer

Hi John,

Here, it is because if he had said -

"Je faisais toujours comme ça "

it could be construed as it being what he 'used to do' but doesn't do anymore which isn't what is meant here.

Hope this helps!

Like24 years ago

John C. asked:

Imparfait vs passé composé

The word "toujours" is confusing here. Why doesn't Bastien respond in the imperfect to express his habitual actions and say "je faisais toujours comme ça" instead of saying "j'ai toujours fait comme ça..."? He has "always" left his clothes on the floor and still intends to do so. Shouldn't this scenario be expressed by the imperfect? Thanks for any help.

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