{"id":22071,"date":"2015-05-29T23:59:18","date_gmt":"2015-05-29T21:59:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/?p=22071"},"modified":"2017-10-23T15:08:02","modified_gmt":"2017-10-23T13:08:02","slug":"using-de-with-french-verbs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/french\/using-de-with-french-verbs\/","title":{"rendered":"Using “de” with French Verbs"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of my biggest problems when I started learning French was prepositions (quoi??<\/strong> a preposition is a word showing relation to another word in the clause. Par exemple<\/strong>: I always color outside<\/em> the lines.). They can be very tricky because new learners will always want to translate their native language into French, and it just doesn\u2019t always work. They don\u2019t always seem to be logial, so prepositions need to be learned in context.<\/p>\n

– Mad at<\/u> someone? In French, you\u2019re mad against<\/u> someone. (f\u00e2ch\u00e9 contre<\/u> quelqu’un<\/strong>)<\/p>\n

– Eating out of <\/u>someone\u2019s hand? Try again. In French, it\u2019s manger dans<\/u> <\/strong>(in!) la main de quelqu\u2019un<\/strong>!<\/p>\n

– Listening to the radio? Tu \u00e9coutes la radio<\/strong>, not Tu \u00e9coutes \u00e0<\/u> la radio<\/strong>. The \u201cto\u201d preposition we use in English is \u2018already included\u2019 in the verb. \u00c9couter<\/strong> = to listen to<\/u>, so there\u2019s no reason to translate \u201cto\u201d in your sentence.<\/p>\n

– Want to buy me a drink? Great! Tu me payes un verre.<\/strong> No need to say payer pour<\/u><\/strong>:\u00a0payer<\/strong> already means to pay for<\/u>!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It\u2019s just as tough for English learners, too. Do you know what a phrasal verb is? It\u2019s using a preposition with a verb, and depending on the preposition, the verb\u2019s meaning can change. Just look at the image at the top. Look on, look ahead, look back, look through \u2013 they all mean different things! Now try translating them into French. Not so easy.<\/p>\n

Today we\u2019re going to look at the preposition \u201cde\u201d in 2 different contexts: verb + de + infinitive<\/em> and verb + de + direct object<\/em>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Verb + de + infinitive<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s very common in French that if you want to use verbs in a row, they may need to be separated with a preposition (de <\/strong>or \u00e0 <\/strong>\u2013 we\u2019ll get to \u00e0 another time).<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0J\u2019ai essay\u00e9 d<\/u>\u2019appeler ma m\u00e8re, mais la ligne \u00e9tait occup\u00e9e.
\n<\/strong>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0I tried calling my mother, but the line was busy.<\/p>\n

Note the usage of de between essayer and appeler!<\/p>\n

Essayer is one of those verbs that takes de<\/strong> if there\u2019s another verb following it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The bad news? There are no rules. The good news? I\u2019m giving you a list! Memorize these verbs and use de<\/strong> with them! There are more, but here\u2019s a list of common ones:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
accepter de<\/strong><\/td>\nto accept or agree to<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
achever de<\/strong><\/td>\nto finish ___-ing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
s\u2019agir de<\/strong><\/td>\nto be a question of ___-ing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
avoir peur de<\/strong><\/td>\nto be scared of ___-ing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
cesser de<\/strong><\/td>\nto stop ___-ing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
se contenter de<\/strong><\/td>\nto be happy ___-ing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
continuer de<\/strong><\/td>\nto continue ___-ing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
d\u00e9cider de<\/strong><\/td>\nto decide to<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
demander <\/strong>\u00a0(\u00e0 quelqu\u2019un) de<\/strong><\/td>\nto ask someone to<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
dire <\/strong>(\u00e0 quelqu\u2019un) de<\/strong><\/td>\nto tell (someone) to do something<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
empecher de <\/strong><\/td>\nto keep from ___-ing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
essayer de<\/strong><\/td>\nto try to<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
s\u2019excuser de<\/strong><\/td>\nto apologize for ___-ing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
finir de<\/strong><\/td>\nto finish ___-ing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
offrir de<\/strong><\/td>\nto offer to<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
oublier de<\/strong><\/td>\nto forget to<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
promettre de<\/strong><\/td>\nto promise to<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
refuser de<\/strong><\/td>\nto refuse to<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
se souvenir de<\/strong><\/td>\nto remember<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Verb + de + direct object<\/strong><\/p>\n

Un complement d\u2019objet direct<\/strong> (a direct object) is the person or thing that receives the action of the verb.<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0J\u2019ai mang\u00e9 une pomme.
\n<\/strong>\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0I ate an apple.<\/p>\n

What did I eat? Une pomme<\/strong>. This is the direct object.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Certain verbs in French require you to put de<\/strong> between the verb and the direct object. This is especially tricky because it\u2019s not always the case for English. Below I\u2019m giving you a list of some of these verbs. Just as with the previous bunch, there aren\u2019t any rules, so they must be memorized.<\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0J\u2019ai besoin de la cl\u00e9.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I need the key.<\/p>\n

Note the de <\/strong>between the verb phrase and the direct object.<\/p>\n

Here are some verbs that require de<\/strong> before a direct object. It’s especially helpful to know these when learning the relative pronoun\u00a0dont<\/strong>! It’s “la cl\u00e9 dont j’ai besoin<\/strong>,” and not “la cl\u00e9 que j’ai besoin.<\/strong>” Why? The verb is avoir besoin de<\/strong>, and the de<\/strong> becomes dont<\/strong> when using a relative pronoun.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
s\u2019agir de<\/strong><\/td>\nto be a question<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
s\u2019approcher de<\/strong><\/td>\nto approach<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
avoir besoin de<\/strong><\/td>\nto need<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
avoir envie de<\/strong><\/td>\nto want<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
changer de<\/strong><\/td>\nto change<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
f\u00e9liciter de<\/strong><\/td>\nto congratulate<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
jouer de<\/strong><\/td>\nto play (an instrument)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
manquer de<\/strong><\/td>\nto lack<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
se m\u00e9fier de<\/strong><\/td>\nto distrust<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
se moquer de<\/strong><\/td>\nto make fun of<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
s\u2019occuper de<\/strong><\/td>\nto be busy with<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
se plaindre de<\/strong><\/td>\nto complain about<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
profiter de<\/strong><\/td>\nto take advantage of<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
se rendre compte de<\/strong><\/td>\nto realize<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
se souvenir de<\/strong><\/td>\nto remember<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
tenir de<\/strong><\/td>\nto resemble\/take after<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
se tromper de<\/strong><\/td>\nto mistake<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

 <\/p>\n

Any tips to help memorization or use easier? It’s different for everyone, of course, but here are some suggestions:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. When I was learning these, I asked a native French speaker to record\u00a0the list of verbs for me. Then, I would listen to it often until knowing that se souvenir<\/strong> needs de<\/strong> with it. If you learn best through listening, this is an easy way to make this second nature to you.<\/li>\n
  2. Want to see these words in action? The verbs in the list that require de with the direct object can all be used with the relative pronoun\u00a0dont<\/strong>. Go to Google and type together a string of words using dont<\/strong> so you can see the words used in context. For example, earlier I mentioned ‘la cl\u00e9\u00a0don’t j’ai besoin<\/strong>‘ – try typing in “dont j’ai besoin<\/strong>” in Google and check it out in.<\/li>\n
  3. Similar to the method above, give it a shot using the verb without a relative pronoun. Use other tenses and different subjects and see what you can find. For example:\u00a0“Jimi Hendrix joue de<\/strong>” or “il s’est moqu\u00e9 de<\/strong>” or\u00a0“elle veut que tu t’occupes de<\/strong>” You don’t need to be advanced to do this. Just type in what you can do to see what you do know to see how you can use these words in real language (not just what you learn in class).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n

    Do you have any other memorization tips?<\/p>\n

    \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

    One of my biggest problems when I started learning French was prepositions (quoi?? a preposition is a word showing relation to another word in the clause. Par exemple: I always color outside the lines.). They can be very tricky because new learners will always want to translate their native language into French, and it just…<\/p>\n

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