9.2. C’était comment ?

Describing What Someone or Something Was Like in the Past

9.2.1. The Main Idea

To describe what someone or something was like in the past, French often uses the imparfait.

C’était calme.	It was calm.
C’était intéressant.	It was interesting.
Ma maison était petite.	My house was small.
Mon quartier était tranquille.	My neighbourhood was quiet.

The imparfait is useful for past descriptions, background information, habits, and things that used to be true.

9.2.2. Être in the Imparfait

j’étais	I was
tu étais	you were, informal
il était	he was / it was
elle était	she was / it was
nous étions	we were
vous étiez	you were, formal or plural
ils étaient	they were, masculine or mixed
elles étaient	they were, feminine

9.2.3. Describing a Place

Ma maison était petite.	My house was small.
Ma maison était grande.	My house was big.
Mon quartier était calme.	My neighbourhood was calm.
La rue était tranquille.	The street was quiet.
La cuisine était moderne.	The kitchen was modern.
Le jardin était beau.	The garden was beautiful.
Ma chambre était confortable.	My bedroom was comfortable.

9.2.4. Describing a Person

J’étais timide.	I was shy.
J’étais calme.	I was calm.
J’étais curieux.	I was curious. masculine
J’étais curieuse.	I was curious. feminine
Il était gentil.	He was kind.
Elle était gentille.	She was kind.
Mon frère était drôle.	My brother was funny.
Ma sœur était sérieuse.	My sister was serious.

9.2.5. Describing Things

Le cours était difficile.	The class was difficult.
Le film était intéressant.	The movie was interesting.
Le livre était ennuyeux.	The book was boring.
La musique était belle.	The music was beautiful.
La nourriture était bonne.	The food was good.
Les devoirs étaient longs.	The homework was long.

9.2.6. Common Description Words

petit	small / short, masculine
petite	small / short, feminine
grand	big / tall, masculine
grande	big / tall, feminine
calme	calm
tranquille	quiet / peaceful
intéressant	interesting, masculine
intéressante	interesting, feminine
difficile	difficult
facile	easy
beau	beautiful, masculine
belle	beautiful, feminine
bon	good, masculine
bonne	good, feminine
ennuyeux	boring, masculine
ennuyeuse	boring, feminine
gentil	kind, masculine
gentille	kind, feminine
drôle	funny
sérieux	serious, masculine
sérieuse	serious, feminine
curieux	curious, masculine
curieuse	curious, feminine

9.2.7. Asking What Something Was Like

C’était comment ?	What was it like?
Ta maison était comment ?	What was your house like?
Ton quartier était comment ?	What was your neighbourhood like?
Ton école était comment ?	What was your school like?
Tu étais comment quand tu étais enfant ?	What were you like when you were a child?

9.2.8. Using Quand

Use quand to give past context.

Quand j’étais enfant, ma maison était petite.	When I was a child, my house was small.
Quand j’étais jeune, mon quartier était calme.	When I was young, my neighbourhood was quiet.
Quand elle était enfant, elle était timide.	When she was a child, she was shy.
Quand nous étions jeunes, l’école était difficile.	When we were young, school was difficult.

9.2.9. Negative Sentences

Place ne… pas around être.

C’était calme.	It was calm.
Ce n’était pas calme.	It was not calm.
J’étais timide.	I was shy.
Je n’étais pas timide.	I was not shy.
Ma maison était grande.	My house was big.
Ma maison n’était pas grande.	My house was not big.

9.2.10. Core Patterns

C’était ___ .	It was ___ .
Ce n’était pas ___ .	It was not ___ .
J’étais ___ .	I was ___ .
Il était ___ .	He / it was ___ .
Elle était ___ .	She / it was ___ .
Ma maison était ___ .	My house was ___ .
Quand j’étais enfant, ___ .	When I was a child, ___ .

9.2.11. Practice

It was calm. |

It was not calm. |

My house was small. |

My neighbourhood was quiet. |

I was shy. |

She was kind. |

The class was difficult. |

When I was a child, my house was big. |

What was it like? |

9.2.12. Answers

It was calm.	C’était calme.
It was not calm.	Ce n’était pas calme.
My house was small.	Ma maison était petite.
My neighbourhood was quiet.	Mon quartier était tranquille.
I was shy.	J’étais timide.
She was kind.	Elle était gentille.
The class was difficult.	Le cours était difficile.
When I was a child, my house was big.	Quand j’étais enfant, ma maison était grande.
What was it like?	C’était comment ?

9.2.13. Short Dialogue

A : Ta maison d’enfance était comment ?	A: What was your childhood home like?
B : Elle était petite, mais très confortable. Et ton quartier ?	B: It was small, but very comfortable. And your neighbourhood?
A : Mon quartier était calme et beau.	A: My neighbourhood was quiet and beautiful.
B : Très bien !	B: Very good!

9.2.14. Checkpoint

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to describe what someone, something, or a place was like in the past using the imparfait of être, especially forms like j’étais, c’était, il était, elle était, and ils étaient.