All about the PASSÉ COMPOSÉ tense (with the auxiliary "avoir")

 Construction of the Past Tense with "avoir" : 

The past tense is formed with the verb "avoir" in the present indicative and with a past participle

 Usage of the Past Tense : 

The past tense is used for:
 

• to talk about a specific action in the past or an important action. This action is dated, it is precisely located in time.
   

For example: Avant-hier, j’ai mangé au restaurant (The day before yesterday, I ate at a restaurant).
 

• to talk about a punctual action in the past. It does not happen every day, it is not a habit, it is occasional.
   

For example: Elle est née le 13 Juillet 1980 (She was born on July 13, 1980).
 

• to talk about an action with a limited duration in the past. There is a date that specifies the limited duration of this past action.
   

For example: J’ai travaillé dans cette entreprise de 2017 à 2019 (I worked in this company from 2017 to 2019).
 

• to talk about successive and punctual actions in the past. Here we have several punctual and successive actions, one after the other in the past.
   

For example: J’ai quitté mon travail, je suis partie en Argentine et j’ai acheté une maison là-bas (I left my job, I went to Argentina and I bought a house there).
 

• To express a sudden action: an important action that will change a situation or cause consequences
   

For example: Je me promenais quand il a commencé à pleuvoir (I was walking when it started to rain).