#williamylee

1 messages · Page 1 of 1 (latest)

analog phoenixBOT
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Please be patient

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bold owl
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In English, I believe this is achieved using the gerund of the verb (know -> knowing ...). How does it work in French?

clear lintel
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if I want to say, "knowing people is important for me"
Connatre les gens c'est important pour moi

idk the rules but i've noticed when they use it like that (what ever that's called), they use the to verb form, whatever that's called.

bold owl
distant solar
bold owl
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Connaître les gens, pour moi, c'est très important, c'est mieux, selon moi, que de visiter des villes, des musées ou des monuments.
Why is "visiter" here preceded by a "de"? Can you not say "Connaître les gens, c'est mieux que visiter ..."?

clear lintel
nocturne hamlet
# bold owl > Connaître les gens, pour moi, c'est très important, c'est mieux, selon moi, qu...

When a verb is followed by an infinitive, a preposition often but not always shows up. It depends entirely on the verb in question and not the infinitive, it’s something people often get wrong. Just as an example:
• décider takes de
J’ai décide de trouver l’homme.
• hésiter takes à
J’hésite à trouver l’homme.
• espérer takes none
J’espère trouver l’homme.

Unfortunately, what preposition a verb chooses is completely random and you have to memorise it. « être » is commonly followed by « de » like: « C’est plus facile d’aimer que de détester. »

bold owl
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Is it because of "c'est important (de)"?

nocturne hamlet
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If it was because of « c’est important », the « que » wouldn’t make sense

bold owl
nocturne hamlet
# bold owl Sorry I didn't understand. Why is "de" needed here? Why can't you say "c'est mie...

Again, when a verb is followed by an infinitive, a preposition may or may not appear. Whatever happens depends entirely on the first verb and not the infinitive. « décider » has « de », « aider » has « à », and « espérer » has none. It just happens and it’s unique to each verb so you have to learn it one by one. Now, « être » is commonly followed by « de » when an infinitive comes after. That’s it.

bold owl
nocturne hamlet