venir de + Infinitive

Recent Past with Venir De

Level 1

The 'passé récent' (recent past) is formed by conjugating the verb venir in the present tense, adding the preposition de, and then the infinitive of the action verb.

How It Works

The passé récent is the standard way to express that an action happened very recently. Unlike the passé composé, which covers the general past, venir de specifically highlights that the action is fresh.

1. Conjugation:
Only the verb venir is conjugated. The main action remains in its infinitive form.

  • Je viens de partir (I just left)
  • Tu viens de finir (You just finished)
  • Il/Elle vient de voir (He/She just saw)

2. Elision:
When the infinitive starts with a vowel or a mute 'h', de becomes d'. This is an example of elision.

3. Negation:
To negate this structure, place ne...pas around the conjugated verb venir: Je ne viens pas de manger (I didn't just eat).

4. Pronoun Placement:
If you use direct object pronouns or reflexive pronouns, they must be placed between de and the infinitive: Je viens de le voir (I just saw it).

5. Past Context:
While usually used in the present, it can be used in the imparfait to say you 'had just' done something: Je venais de partir quand il a téléphoné.

Examples (6)

  1. Je viens de finir mes devoirs.

    I have just finished my homework.

    Word by Word: I come from to finish my homeworks.

    The present tense of 'venir' (viens) + 'de' + infinitive (finir) indicates the action was completed moments ago.

  2. Attention ! Le gâteau vient de sortir du four.

    Watch out! The cake just came out of the oven.

    Word by Word: Attention! The cake comes from to go out of the oven.

    This shows the immediate nature of the action, explaining why the cake is still hot.

  3. Ils viennent d'arriver à la gare.

    They have just arrived at the station.

    Word by Word: They come from to arrive at the station.

    Note the elision: 'de' becomes 'd'' before the vowel in 'arriver'.

  4. Je ne viens pas de manger.

    I didn't just eat.

    Word by Word: I not come not from to eat.

    In negative sentences, 'ne...pas' surrounds the conjugated verb 'venir'.

  5. Je viens de le voir.

    I just saw him.

    Word by Word: I come from him to see.

    Object pronouns are placed between 'de' and the infinitive.

  6. Je venais de me coucher quand tu as appelé.

    I had just gone to bed when you called.

    Word by Word: I was coming from me to bed when you have called.

    Using 'venir' in the imparfait (venais) expresses 'had just' in a past narrative.

Common Mistakes

  • Placing object pronouns before 'venir' instead of before the infinitive.

    Je le viens de voir.
    Je viens de le voir.

    In French, when using an infinitive construction, the object pronoun must be placed immediately before the infinitive verb it relates to.

  • Forgetting the preposition 'de'.

    Different MeaningJe viens manger.
    Je viens de manger.

    'Je viens manger' is correct French, but it means 'I am coming (in order) to eat.' Add 'de' to express the recent past ('I just ate').

  • Conjugating the second verb.

    Il vient de mangé.
    Il vient de manger.

    After the preposition 'de', the following verb must always be in its infinitive (unconjugated) form.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

venir de + InfinitiveLevel 1Recent Past with Venir De

Learn This First

To use the recent past construction, you must first be able to conjugate the irregular verb 'venir' in the present tense. You also need to understand how to use subject pronouns and basic sentence structure to correctly place the infinitive after the preposition 'de'.

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Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

venir devenir