Saint Valentine: History, Love Stories, and French Verbs

Posted on Apr 3, 2025 in French

Who Was Saint Valentine?

February 14th is Saint Valentine’s Day. Valentine is considered the patron saint of lovers. There are several versions of the story of Saint Valentine’s life. The most common version is that Saint Valentine was a priest who was imprisoned and beheaded on February 14th.

The story says that many children loved Valentine. He was their friend. To comfort him, the children passed messages of love through the bars of his cell. This may be the explanation for the sweet notes that are exchanged with flowers and gifts on February 14th.

Love in All Its Forms!

In films and stories, we often hear tales of love. Sometimes, they are beautiful and end with a marriage and many children. Other times, they are much sadder. Among these famous love stories, we can mention:

  • Paul and Virginie
  • Pierrot and Colombine
  • Belle and the Beast
  • Romeo and Juliet, a play by William Shakespeare

What is Love For?

To answer that, here is a song by Edith Piaf, set to a wonderful animation by Luis de Clichy.


French Verb Conjugation

Passé Composé:

ai, as, a, avons, avez, ont.

Auxiliary Verbs: Avoir (eu), Être (été)

  • Aimer (aimé)
  • Aller (allé)
  • Appeler (appelé)
  • Attendre (attendu)
  • Boire (bu)
  • Choisir (choisi)
  • Commencer (commencé)
  • Croire (cru)
  • Devoir (dû)
  • Dire (dit)
  • Dormir (dormi)
  • Écrire (écrit)
  • Envoyer (envoyé)
  • Faire (fait)
  • Falloir (il a fallu)
  • Finir (fini)
  • Se Lever (je me suis levé)
  • Lire (lu)
  • Manger (mangé)
  • Mettre (mis)
  • Ouvrir (ouvert)
  • Partir (parti)
  • Pleuvoir (il a plu)
  • Prendre (pris)
  • Pouvoir (pu)
  • Venir (venu)
  • Voir (vu)
  • Vouloir (voulu)

Imparfait:

ais, ais, ait, ions, iez, aient.

  • Avoir (avais)
  • Être (étais)
  • Aimer (aimais)
  • Aller (allais)
  • Appeler (appelais)
  • Attendre (attendais)
  • Boire (buvais)
  • Choisir (choisissais)
  • Commencer (commençais)
  • Croire (croyais)
  • Devoir (devais)
  • Dire (disais)
  • Dormir (dormais)
  • Écrire (écrivais)
  • Faire (faisais)
  • Falloir (il fallait)
  • Se Lever (me levais)
  • Lire (lisais)
  • Manger (mangeais)
  • Mettre (mettais)
  • Ouvrir (ouvrais)
  • Partir (partais)
  • Pleuvoir (il pleuvait)
  • Prendre (prenais)
  • Pouvoir (pouvais)
  • Venir (venais)
  • Voir (voyais)
  • Vouloir (voulais)