Sentence Patterns & Advanced Verbs

Nominalization, causative, negation, emphasis, and gerund/participle.

• French Emphasis: 'It's me who...' (C'est... qui/que)

  Shift focus and add drama by wrapping the most important part of your sentence in 'C'est... qui/que'.
• The 'Fancy Ghost' Ne: Formal Expletive Ne (Ne explétif)

  The 'ne explétif' is a formal, non-negative filler used for stylistic elegance in specific clauses.
• Advanced Pronominal Agreement: To Agree or Not? (Accord du participe passé)

  Past participles only agree with the preceding direct object, even when using 'être' with pronominal verbs.
• French Past Participle Agreement with 'avoir' (Preceding COD)

  When the Direct Object precedes 'avoir', the past participle must match its gender and number.
• Letting things happen: The French Causative (Laisser + infinitif)

  Use laisser + infinitif to describe permission or indifference where the subject allows someone else to act.
• French Nominalization: Turning Verbs into Nouns (-tion, -ment)

  Master nominalization to transform simple actions into sophisticated concepts and sound more like a native French speaker.
• French Complex Negations: ni... ni, guère, and point

  Master complex negations to express specific nuances, boost formality, and sound like a sophisticated B2-level French speaker.
• What's it about? (s'agir de vs il est question de)

  Use 'il s'agit de' to define the essence and 'il est question de' for topics of discussion.
• The Participle with a Different Subject (Absolute Construction)

  Drop the 'en' and pair a noun with an '-ant' verb to link different subjects with style.
• Shortening Sentences: The Present Participle (sachant, faisant)

  Use the present participle to replace relative or causal clauses for more sophisticated, concise, and professional French writing.
• French Verbs with Prepositions before Infinitives (apprendre à, décider de)

  French verbs often require specific prepositions like à or de to link with an infinitive action.