How do I differentiate between the Imperfect Tense (Imparfait) and the Past Tense (Passé Composé)?

The Imparfait and Passé Composé are the two main past tenses in French. Try to think of the Passé Composé in your mind as completed in comparison to the Imparfait. It deals with whatever has taken place at a specific moment and is often used to narrate a storyline of specific events (Un lundi, je suis allé nager). On the other hand, the Imparfait is a more habitual past tense and should be used when referring to our habits, ongoing events in the past, and to describe settings like the weather (Le lundi, j’allais souvent nager).

Often, these two verbs are used together in the same sentence. For example :

Hier, je dormais sur mon canapé, le chat a sauté sur moi !

In this sentence, we observe a descriptive and ongoing activity (je dormais) being interrupted by an immediate action (le chat a sauté).

If you’re unsure what past tense is what, it’s helpful to know off the top of your head a few trigger words which are often used alongside the two past tenses. For the Passé Composé, phrases like tout à coup (all of a sudden) and soudain (suddenly) are common triggers for specific actions completed in the past, while de temps en temps (from time to time) and d’habitude (usually) imply habitual actions, therefore triggering the Imparfait!