Pardonner

Pardonner is a French verb meaning to forgive or to pardon someone for a fault or offense. It is a transitive verb that is typically used with a direct object indicating what is forgiven and often with an indirect object indicating the person who is forgiven: pardonner quelque chose à quelqu’un or pardonner à quelqu’un quelque chose. In everyday speech, speakers commonly say Je te pardonne.

Conjugation and usage notes: Pardonner is a regular -er verb. Present tense forms are je pardonne, tu pardonnes, il pardonne, nous pardonnons, vous pardonnez, ils pardonnent. The passé composé is formed with avoir: j’ai pardonné. The imperfect is je pardonnais, the future je pardonnerai, and the conditional je pardonnerais. The subjunctive present is que je pardonne. The verb can also be used reflexively as se pardonner, meaning to forgive oneself: je me pardonne cette erreur.

Etymology and related terms: Pardonner comes from Old French pardonner, ultimately tracing to Latin perdonare, from donare to give, with a sense of remitting a debt or fault. The noun p pardoning is le pardon, meaning the act of forgiveness or clemency. Related verbs include excuser (to excuse), absoudre (to absolve), and gracier (to grant clemency). Se pardonner is common in personal or moral contexts, while pardon can appear in legal or formal settings.

Usage notes: Pardonner emphasizes reconciliation at the personal level, whereas absoudre or gracier are used in religious, judicial, or ceremonial contexts. The phrase se pardonner quelque chose is widely used to express forgiving oneself for a specific action or mistake.