Conjugate vouloir (+avoir) in the compound past in French (Le Passé Composé)

Written by Qualified French Expert Aurélie Drouard HKH, Licence d'anglais LLCE

Last updated: 2023-11-07

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In Le Passé Composé (Indicatif), the verb vouloir (to want) has an irregular past participle: voulu.

Conjugation of VOULOIR (to want) in Le Passé Composé (Indicatif) in French

j'	ai voulu
tu	as voulu
il / elle / on	a voulu
nous	avons voulu
vous	avez voulu
ils/elles	ont voulu

Here's the pattern to conjugate vouloir in Le Passé Composé (Indicatif) :

avoir in Le Présent + voulu

Here are some examples to listen to:

J'ai toujours voulu visiter Paris.I've always wanted to visit Paris.

Tu as voulu nous rejoindre, mais on était déjà partis.You wanted to join us, but we were already gone.

Mon élève a voulu tricher, mais je l'ai pris la main dans le sac.My pupil tried (wanted) to cheat, but I caught him red-handed.

Nous n'avons jamais voulu vous faire de mal.We never wanted to hurt you.

Je sais que vous avez voulu l'aider, et je vous en remercie.I know you wanted to help him, and I thank you for it.

Elles ont toujours voulu être astronautes.They've always wanted to be astronauts.

In Le Passé Composé (Indicatif), the meaning of vouloir is often closer to "tried".

Note that with avoir as an auxiliary, past participles never agree with the subject of the verb:

Il a voulu avaler trop vite, et il s'est étouffé.He tried to swallow too fast, and he choked.

Elle a voulu avaler trop vite, et elle s'est étouffée.She tried to swallow too fast, and she choked.

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