Present tense as apposed to the imperfect and passé compose.

Jean G.C1Kwiziq community member

Present tense as apposed to the imperfect and passé compose.

Is it always the case that one uses the present tense after depuis que rather than the imperfect and passé composé as in " Since I was small, I travelled a great deal"?

Asked 3 years ago
CécileNative French expert teacher in KwiziqCorrect answer

Hi Jean, 

This is a classic case of using 'depuis' and the present tense because the action is ongoing in the present 

Depuis que je suis toute petite, je voyage énormément ( et ça continue) 

Bonne Continuation!

Chris W.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

As always, a grammatical rule is only a guideline in French. So, yes, there are cases when depuis goes with passé composé or imparfait. Here is some more: https://briewish.com/wp-content/uploads/Handout-Imparfait-avec-depuis.pdf

Present tense as apposed to the imperfect and passé compose.

Is it always the case that one uses the present tense after depuis que rather than the imperfect and passé composé as in " Since I was small, I travelled a great deal"?

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