{"id":6613,"date":"2021-03-03T08:56:42","date_gmt":"2021-03-03T08:56:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/?p=6613"},"modified":"2021-02-26T21:58:11","modified_gmt":"2021-02-26T21:58:11","slug":"the-infinitive-in-french","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/the-infinitive-in-french\/","title":{"rendered":"The infinitive in French"},"content":{"rendered":"

The infinitive in French<\/strong><\/h1>\n

The infinitive (l’infinitif, in French), together with the participles,\u00a0is an unconjugated form of the verb<\/strong>\u00a0;\u00a0that is, a form of the verb that does not contain time, number, or person markers.\u00a0French infinitive verbs can end in -er\u00a0parler<\/em>\u00a0(speak), -ir\u00a0finir<\/em>\u00a0(end), -re\u00a0prendre<\/em>\u00a0(take) or -oir\u00a0voir<\/em>\u00a0(see)<\/p>\n

The infinitives form the base and are the first step we understand about verbs in the language.\u00a0This is the purest part through which you\u00a0then conjugate new constructions and form sentences.<\/strong><\/p>\n

How can you use the infinitive?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The infinitive is the basic, unconjugated form of a verb<\/strong>\u00a0, sometimes called the noun of the verb.\u00a0In English, the infinitive is the word\u00a0to<\/em>\u00a0“a”, followed by a verb:\u00a0to talk, to see, to return<\/em>\u00a0, (to speak, to see, to return).\u00a0The French infinitive is a single word with one of the following endings: -er, -ir, or -re<\/strong>\u00a0:\u00a0parler<\/em>\u00a0(to speak)\u00a0, voir<\/em>\u00a0(to see)\u00a0, rendre<\/em>\u00a0(to return).\u00a0The French infinitive can be used in several different ways without any conjugation.\u00a0Note that it is often translated in English as the present participle:<\/p>\n

    \n
  • As a noun – the subject or object of a sentence.<\/li>\n
  • After a preposition (see verbs with prepositions).<\/li>\n
  • After a conjugated verb.<\/li>\n
  • Instead of the imperative for impersonal commands.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

    Infinitive without preposition<\/strong><\/h2>\n

    \u00a0<\/strong>Madame Durand ne sait o\u00fa mettre<\/em><\/p>\n

    Construction analogous to the Spanish one: Madame Durand does not know where to put\u2026 \u201d.\u00a0This use of the infinitive is very frequent also in French, especially with the verb savoir (to know).\u00a0<\/strong>The second sentence is always an indirect question: \u201cwhat\u2026, where\u2026, how\u2026\u201d:\u00a0Je ne sais que dire<\/em>\u00a0, (I don’t know what to say).\u00a0It should be noted that\u00a0not all verbs frequently use\u00a0pas<\/em>\u00a0in the negative form<\/strong>\u00a0, as are the cases of knowledge and power.<\/p>\n

    It is distinguished by its endings:<\/strong><\/h2>\n
      \n
    • Verbs of the first group, in –\u00a0er: chanter<\/em>\u00a0(to sing)\u00a0, manger<\/em>\u00a0(to eat),\u00a0aimer<\/em>\u00a0(to love\u00a0…)<\/em><\/li>\n
    • Second group, in – ir: r\u00e9fl\u00e9chir<\/em>\u00a0(to think)\u00a0, finir<\/em>\u00a0(to finish)\u00a0, rougir<\/em>\u00a0(to blush\u00a0) …<\/em><\/li>\n
    • Verbs of the third group, in \u2013ir, –\u00a0oir, -re: voir<\/em>\u00a0(see),\u00a0come<\/em>\u00a0(come),\u00a0understand<\/em>\u00a0(hear) …<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      When are infinitives used in French?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

      The infinitive (l’infinitif, in French) is, together with the gerund and the participle, a non-personal form of verbs that is used in French after certain words and verb constructions.<\/p>\n

      Example:<\/p>\n

        \n
      • avoir l’intention + de + infinitif \u2192 J’ai l’intention d’apprendre \u00e0 jouer au tennis.\u00a0vouloir + infinitif \u2192 Je veux acheter une bonne raquette.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        The infinitive without a preposition is used, as in Spanish<\/strong>\u00a0, after the verbs:\u00a0pouvoir<\/em>\u00a0(power),\u00a0vouloir<\/em>\u00a0(want),\u00a0devoir<\/em>\u00a0(duty)\u00a0, falloir<\/em>\u00a0(be precise)\u00a0sembler<\/em>\u00a0(resemble),\u00a0para\u00eetre<\/em>\u00a0(seem).\u00a0Also after the verbs that express sensitive perceptions or that mean ”\u00a0dire<\/em>\u00a0” (to say), ”\u00a0penser<\/em>\u00a0” (to think) and\u00a0“croire”<\/em>\u00a0(to believe)<\/p>\n

        Examples:<\/em><\/p>\n

          \n
        • Nous pouvons.\u00a0Il veut, tu dois apprendre le fran\u00e7ais \/<\/em>\u00a0(We can. He wants, you have to learn French)<\/li>\n
        • J’ai vu les hommes travailler.\u00a0\/<\/em>\u00a0(I saw the men working).<\/li>\n
        • Nous avons I thought aller \u00e0 Paris \/<\/em>\u00a0(We thought about going to Paris)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          \u00a0<\/em>In addition, something that does not happen in Spanish,\u00a0verbs of movement are constructed with an infinitive without a preposition<\/strong>\u00a0.\u00a0In Spanish they lead “to”<\/p>\n

          Il est come nous voir \/<\/em>\u00a0(He has come to see us)<\/p>\n

          How to conjugate infinitive verbs in French?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

          \u00a0<\/strong>To conjugate French verbs in the present tense, you have to remove the infinitive endings, -er, -ir, -re, and add the endings corresponding to each group.\u00a0Most verbs ending in -ir are conjugated as finir.<\/p>\n

          The infinitive is an impersonal mood;\u00a0<\/strong>expresses an action without indicating the person who performs it.<\/p>\n

          The infinitive with the preposition “of”<\/strong><\/h3>\n

          In Spanish we have some verbs that are constructed like this: \u201cstop talking, be happy to see one, etc.\u00a0In many other cases in which we use the subjunctive with “que” or other turns, the infinitive with ”\u00a0de”<\/em>\u00a0is used in French\u00a0, such<\/em>\u00a0as:<\/p>\n

            \n
          • S\u00e9 h\u00e2ter: Il se h\u00e2te de coming \/<\/em>\u00a0(hurries to come)<\/li>\n
          • prier: Je te prie d’entrer \/<\/em>\u00a0(I beg you to come in)<\/li>\n
          • menacer: On mena\u00e7ait de l\u00e0ttaquer \/<\/em>\u00a0(they threatened to attack him)<\/li>\n
          • come: Je viens de le voir \/<\/em>\u00a0(I just saw you)<\/li>\n
          • t\u00e2cher: T\u00e2chez de ne pas rire \/<\/em>\u00a0(try not to laugh)<\/li>\n
          • proposer: On lui propose to depart \/<\/em>\u00a0(they propose that you leave)<\/li>\n
          • d\u00e9cider: Nous sommes d\u00e9cid\u00e9 de rester \/<\/em>\u00a0(we are determined to stay)<\/li>\n
          • demander: Je lui sue de me pardonner \/<\/em>\u00a0(I ask you to forgive me)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

            The infinitive with “\u00e0”<\/strong><\/h3>\n

            \u00a0<\/strong>In many cases it is used as in Spanish.\u00a0In many others, however, no.\u00a0It is said, for example,\u00a0commencer \u00e0<\/em>\u00a0, (start at), but\u00a0chercher \u00e0<\/em>\u00a0(try to)<\/p>\n

            General rules for using the infinitive with \u00e0<\/strong><\/p>\n

            \u00a0<\/strong>To express the purpose, such as:<\/h4>\n
              \n
            • On te donne \u00e0 boire \/<\/em>\u00a0(they give you a drink = something to drink)<\/li>\n
            • Elle este pr\u00eate \u00e0 rendre service<\/em>\u00a0\u00a0 \/ (She is willing to provide service)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              To express an action, in which one lingers<\/h4>\n
                \n
              • Le p\u00e8re l’aide \u00e0 faire ses devoirs \/ (The father helps him do the homework)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                As object of the action of certain verbs:<\/h4>\n
                  \n
                • Commencer: il commence \u00e0 pleurer \/<\/em>\u00a0(It starts to rain)<\/li>\n
                • Aimer: il aime \u00e0 lire \/<\/em>\u00a0(like to read)<\/li>\n
                • Apprendre: il apprend \u00e0 \u00e9crire \/<\/em>\u00a0(Learn to write)<\/li>\n
                • Chercher: il cherche \u00e0 s’imposer \/<\/em>\u00a0(tries to impose himself)<\/li>\n
                • R\u00e9ussir: il r\u00e9ussit \u00e0 se d\u00e9brouiller \/<\/em>\u00a0(manages to\u00a0fix it<\/em>\u00a0)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                  Many infinitives have been transformed into names and are used preceded by a determiner:<\/strong><\/h4>\n
                    \n
                  • Le d\u00e9jeuner<\/em><\/li>\n
                  • (lunch<\/li>\n
                  • D\u00eener<\/em>\u00a0\/<\/li>\n
                  • (dinner)<\/li>\n
                  • Souvenir<\/em>\u00a0\/<\/li>\n
                  • (the memory)<\/li>\n
                  • I pouvoir<\/em>\u00a0\/<\/li>\n
                  • (the power)<\/li>\n
                  • Le rire<\/em>\u00a0\u00a0 \/ (laughter)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                    Conclusion<\/strong>\u00a0: Infinitives may seem basic, and they are, but always remember that it is the basic things that lead to something great and glorious.<\/p>\n

                    Something also very important to bear in mind is that it is essential to demonstrate your level of any foreign language.\u00a0Here we leave you\u00a0the platform number 1\u00a0.<\/p>\n\n\n

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                    \n 5\/5 - (1 vote) <\/div>\n <\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                    The infinitive in French The infinitive (l’infinitif, in French), together with the participles,\u00a0is an unconjugated form of the verb\u00a0;\u00a0that is,...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2637,"featured_media":7163,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"image","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8080,8092,8093,8072,8064],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6613","post","type-post","status-publish","format-image","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-level-a2-levels","category-level-b1-levels","category-level-b2-levels","category-french","category-uncategorized","post_format-post-format-image"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6613","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2637"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6613"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6613\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8961,"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6613\/revisions\/8961"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7163"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6613"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6613"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elblogdeidiomas.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6613"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}