How do you form past tenses in French?

In French grammar, past tenses are formed using different conjugations:

Passé Composé: 

Formed with "avoir" or "être" in present tense + past participle.

Example: J'ai mangé (I ate).

Imparfait:

Used for ongoing past actions. Formed by dropping "-ons" from present nous form + imparfait endings.

Example: Je parlais (I was speaking).

Passé Simple: 

Literary tense for completed past actions. Regular verbs conjugated with specific endings.

Example: Je finis (I finished).

Passé Antérieur: 

Expresses actions before another past action. Formed with auxiliary verbs in passé simple + past participle.

Example: J'eus mangé (I had eaten).

Plus-que-parfait:

Expresses actions before another past action. Formed with imperfect tense of auxiliary verbs + past participle.

Example: J'avais mangé (I had eaten).

Passé Récent: 

Spoken tense for recent past actions. Formed with present of "venir" + "de" + infinitive.

Example: Je viens de manger (I have just eaten).

These tenses allow for expressing various past actions and events accurately in French.