utilisais

Utilisais is the imperfect tense form of the French verb utiliser, meaning to use. It is the second person singular form in the imperfect, written as tu utilisais. Because of elision, the same orthographic sequence can also appear as j'utilisais when the subject is je. The imperfect endings for -er verbs attach to the stem utilis-, giving forms such as j'utilisais, tu utilisais, il utilisait, nous utilisions, vous utilisiez, ils utilisaient.

In use, utilisais functions as a past-tense descriptor indicating ongoing or habitual action in the past. It describes what someone was using or used to use over a period of time, rather than a completed, single event. This contrasts with the passé composé, which would emphasize a specific past action that finished.

Examples illustrate the nuance. Tu utilisais ce logiciel hier, before the update, means you were using that software yesterday. J'utilisais ce chemin tous les jours when I was a student describes a habitual past habit. Les phrases can be expanded with context or adverbs of time to clarify duration or repetition, such as souvent, autrefois, ou pendant longtemps.

Notes for learners include that utilisais is not a standalone dictionary headword; it is a conjugated form of utiliser. Like other imperfect forms, it can express background information in narratives and describes states or routines in the past rather than discrete completed actions. Related forms include j'utilise, tu utilises, il utilise, and the broader imperfect paradigm for the verb utiliser and similar -er verbs. See also: utiliser, imparfait, French conjugation.