FrenchConjugationImparfait

Donner (to give) · Imparfait

By TutorLily Editorial Team · Last updated May 29, 2026

Donner in the French imparfait is: je donnais, tu donnais, il/elle/on donnait, nous donnions, vous donniez, ils/elles donnaient. The imparfait of donner is regular: stem 'donn-' + imparfait endings. 'Chaque Noël, ma grand-mère me donnait un cadeau' = 'Every Christmas, my grandmother used to give me a gift'.

donner conjugation in the Imparfait
To Give	Donner
I used to give	je donnais
you used to give	tu donnais
he/she used to give	il/elle/on donnait
we used to give	nous donnions
you used to give	vous donniez
they used to give	ils/elles donnaient

Examples

Donner (to give) in context

Sentences that use donner in the imparfait. Tap each to hear it.

Chaque Noël je donnais des cadeaux à mes neveux.

Every Christmas I used to give gifts to my nephews.

Tu donnais beaucoup à cette époque.

You used to give a lot back then.

Il donnait de bons conseils à son équipe.

He used to give good advice to his team.

Nous donnions des cours gratuits aux enfants du quartier.

We used to give free lessons to the neighborhood children.

Vous donniez vos vieux vêtements aux associations.

You used to give your old clothes to charities.

Ils donnaient souvent de leur temps aux autres.

They often used to give of their time to others.

Tip

Working with the imparfait

The imparfait paints the background of a past scene: weather, age, habits, descriptions, ongoing actions that get interrupted. "Il faisait nuit" (it was nighttime), "j'avais cinq ans" (I was five years old), "je marchais quand tu m'as appelé" (I was walking when you called me). The imparfait is almost completely regular — the stem comes from the nous form of the present (nous parlons → je parlais), with only être being truly irregular (j'étais). The contrast with passé composé is the single most important past-tense distinction in French: imparfait = background or habitual; passé composé = completed event.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

How do you conjugate donner in the imparfait?

Donner is regular in the imparfait: je donnais, tu donnais, il/elle/on donnait, nous donnions, vous donniez, ils/elles donnaient. Stem 'donn-' from nous form.

When do I use 'je donnais' instead of 'j'ai donné'?

Use 'je donnais' for habitual or repeated past giving: 'chaque dimanche, je donnais à l'église' (every Sunday, I used to give to the church). Use 'j'ai donné' for one-time completed giving: 'dimanche, j'ai donné à l'église' (on Sunday, I gave to the church).

What does 'ça donnait' mean?

'Ça donnait' (literally 'that was giving') is often used to describe an effect: 'ça donnait quelque chose de bizarre' (it produced something strange / it came out strange). Common in descriptions of outcomes, especially after creative work, attempts, or experiments.