passé composé

[ pah-sey kawn-poh-zey ]

/ pɑ seɪ kɔ̃ poʊˈzeɪ /

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noun French.

a grammatical construction of French consisting of the present tense of an auxiliary, either avoir or être, followed by a past participle and corresponding in function to both the English present perfect and the English simple past tenses.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of passé composé

Literally, “compound past”

Words nearby passé composé

pass by, Passchendaele, passcode, pass degree, passe, passé composé, passed, passed ball, passed pawn, passel, passement

How to use passé composé in a sentence

Shaving your head is passe and even tattoos are fading as a personalized cultural statement.
This One Picture of Telly Savalas Refutes All Fears That Progress Has Ended|Nick Gillespie|October 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He then enlisted the help of New York City musician Carlo Nicolau to compose the music.
The Government Is Using Subliminal Songs To Scare Immigrants|Caitlin Dickson|July 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“One can no more write good English than one can compose good music by merely keeping to the rules,” he wrote.
Will Jargon Be the Death of the English Language?|The Telegraph|March 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Perhaps compose a fiction about hard-wired fictionalizing, a fiction that reminds readers of their synaptic deceptions.
The Brain Man: What is E. L. Doctorow Up to?|Tom LeClair|January 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST

But Google grumble grumble makes me compose new messages in a tiny window, you say.
Gmail Priority Inbox Freakout: Calm Down, Guys, Opting Out Is Easy|Winston Ross|July 23, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He placed the paper on the table, and, ere he read a syllable, he laboured to compose himself.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
We suddenly realized that after all the greatness and strength of a nation is made up of the men and women who compose it.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice|Stephen Leacock
The act of the Covenanting Society is complex, and is the aggregate of the actings of all who compose it.
The Ordinance of Covenanting|John Cunningham
Controve, compose or invent tunes, foule fayle, fail miserably.
Chaucer's Works, Volume 1 (of 7) -- Romaunt of the Rose; Minor Poems|Geoffrey Chaucer
About this time he began to compose, although his attempts were merely improvisations.
The Life & Letters of Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky|Modeste Tchaikovsky