N'étas (en. Was not)

/ne eta/

Meaning & Definition

EnglishFrench

verb

Indicates the state of a person or thing in the past.

When I was a child, I often played outside.

Quand j'étais enfant, je jouais souvent dehors.

Used to express a past condition.

If I were rich, I would travel everywhere.

Si j'étais riche, je voyagerais partout.

Implies a description or characteristic in the past.

At that moment, I was very happy.

À ce moment-là, j'étais très heureux.

From the verb 'to be', from the Latin 'essere'.

I was there

Indicates that the person was present at a given moment.

J'étais là

If I were you

Suggests what the person would do in someone else's position.

Si j'étais toi

When I was little

Refers to childhood memories.

Quand j'étais petit

to be

Verb that means to exist or to be located.

être

was

Conjugated form of the verb 'to be' in the third person singular in the imperfect tense.

était

we were

Conjugated form of the verb 'to be' in the first person plural in the imperfect tense.

étions

Used to talk about a state of mind

At that moment, I was really depressed.

À ce moment-là, j'étais vraiment déprimé.

Sometimes used ironically

Oh, if I were a movie star!

Oh, si j'étais une star du cinéma !