laissais

Laissais is the imperfect indicative form of the French verb laisser, meaning to let, leave, allow, or abandon. It appears in the first-person singular and second-person singular forms, with the third-person singular written as laissait. Because the imperfect endings are the same for these subjects, je laissais and tu laissais share the same written form, and the subject is determined from context or explicit pronouns.

In usage, the imperfect denotes a past action that was ongoing, habitual, or descriptive. For example: Je laissais mes clés sur la table chaque soir. Tu laissais souvent les portes ouvertes. These sentences illustrate habitual past actions; the same form would be laissait in the third person singular (il/laissait).

Laisser is a transitive verb with several core senses: to leave something somewhere (Il a laissé son manteau sur le canapé), to let or permit someone to do something (Je laissais entrer le médecin), to abandon or forsake (Elle laissait son passé derrière elle). It also appears in many common expressions and collocations, such as laisser-faire (laissez-faire, the concept of non-interference), laisser passer, and laisser aller (to be carefree or neglectful).

Etymology traces laisser to Old French, with roots in Latin laxare, meaning to loosen or release, reflecting senses of permitting or releasing. The verb forms part of a broad family of French verbs with similar meanings related to permission, abandonment, and remaining in a state.

Note: laissa is the third-person singular form; laissais is frequently encountered in narrative and dialogue due to its dual first- and second-person ambiguity in written French.