essayé

Essayé is the past participle of the French verb essayer, which means to try, attempt, or test. As a participle, it is used to form compound tenses with the auxiliary avoir (for example, j'ai essayé, tu as essayé, il a essayé). When used as an adjective, essayé describes something that has been tried or tested and agrees with the noun it modifies (for instance, une méthode essayée, des essais essayés).

Conjugation notes: the verb essayer itself is conjugated like a regular -er verb in most tenses, with spellings adjusted to preserve pronunciation. The past participle is toujours essayé in masculine singular and essayée in feminine singular; masculine plural is essayés and feminine plural essayées. The infinitive is essayer, and common present forms include j'essaie, tu essaies, il essaie, nous essayons, vous essayez, ils essaient. The imperfect is essayais, essayait, essayions, essayiez, essayaient; the future is essayerai, essayeras, essayera, essayerons, essayerez, essaieront.

Etymology and related terms: essayé derives from the Old French verb essayer, linked to the noun essai meaning a trial or test. The noun essai covers meanings such as a trial, an attempt, or a written essay in modern French. Related verbs include essai, essayer, and other forms built around the idea of testing or attempting something.

Usage overview: in everyday French, essayer and its participle essayé are used to express trying or testing actions, as in J'ai essayé ce logiciel (I tried this software), or to describe a method or result that has been attempted and found workable, as in une méthode essayée et éprouvée. The word is distinct from essai, the noun meaning a trial or an essay in writing.