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Definition 2024
altérer
altérer
French
Verb
altérer
- to alter; change; fiddle with
- to cause thirst
Conjugation
This verb is conjugated like céder. It is a regular -er verb, except that its last stem vowel alternates between /e/ (written ‘é’) and /ɛ/ (written ‘è’), with the latter being used before mute ‘e’. One special case is the future stem, used in the future and the conditional. Before 1990, the future stem of such verbs was written altérer-, reflecting the historic pronunciation /e/. In 1990, the French Academy recommended that it be written altèrer-, reflecting the now common pronunciation /ɛ/, thereby making this distinction consistent throughout the conjugation (and also matching in this regard the conjugations of verbs like lever and jeter). Both spellings are in use today, and both are therefore given here.
Conjugation of altérer (see also Appendix:French verbs)
| simple | compound | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| infinitive | altérer | avoir altéré | |||||
| gerund | en altérant | en ayant altéré | |||||
| present participle | altérant /al.te.ʁɑ̃/ |
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| past participle | altéré /al.te.ʁe/ |
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| person | singular | plural | |||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| indicative | je (j’) | tu | il | nous | vous | ils | |
| simple tenses |
present | altère /al.tɛʁ/ |
altères /al.tɛʁ/ |
altère /al.tɛʁ/ |
altérons /al.te.ʁɔ̃/ |
altérez /al.te.ʁe/ |
altèrent /al.tɛʁ/ |
| imperfect | altérais /al.te.ʁɛ/ |
altérais /al.te.ʁɛ/ |
altérait /al.te.ʁɛ/ |
altérions /al.te.ʁjɔ̃/ |
altériez /al.te.ʁje/ |
altéraient /al.te.ʁɛ/ |
|
| past historic1 | altérai /al.te.ʁe/ |
altéras /al.te.ʁa/ |
altéra /al.te.ʁa/ |
altérâmes /al.te.ʁam/ |
altérâtes /al.te.ʁat/ |
altérèrent /al.te.ʁɛʁ/ |
|
| future | altèrerai or altérerai /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁe/ |
altèreras or altéreras /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁa/ |
altèrera or altérera /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁa/ |
altèrerons or altérerons /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁɔ̃/ |
altèrerez or altérerez /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁe/ |
altèreront or altéreront /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁɔ̃/ |
|
| conditional | altèrerais or altérerais /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁɛ/ |
altèrerais or altérerais /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁɛ/ |
altèrerait or altérerait /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁɛ/ |
altèrerions or altérerions /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁjɔ̃/ |
altèreriez or altéreriez /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁje/ |
altèreraient or altéreraient /al.tɛ.ʁə.ʁɛ/ |
|
| compound tenses |
present perfect | Use the present tense of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | Use the imperfect tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| past anterior1 | Use the past historic tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| future perfect | Use the future tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| conditional perfect | Use the conditional tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| subjunctive | que je (j’) | que tu | qu’il | que nous | que vous | qu’ils | |
| simple tenses |
present | altère /al.tɛʁ/ |
altères /al.tɛʁ/ |
altère /al.tɛʁ/ |
altérions /al.te.ʁjɔ̃/ |
altériez /al.te.ʁje/ |
altèrent /al.tɛʁ/ |
| imperfect1 |
altérasse /al.te.ʁas/ |
altérasses /al.te.ʁas/ |
altérât /al.te.ʁa/ |
altérassions /al.te.ʁa.sjɔ̃/ |
altérassiez /al.te.ʁa.sje/ |
altérassent /al.te.ʁas/ |
|
| compound tenses |
past | Use the present subjunctive tense of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
| pluperfect1 | Use the imperfect subjunctive tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| imperative | – | tu | – | nous | vous | – | |
| — | altère /al.tɛʁ/ |
— | altérons /al.te.ʁɔ̃/ |
altérez /al.te.ʁe/ |
— | ||
| 1literary tenses | |||||||