Translate: They need us to arrive before the beginning of the ceremony.I don't understand why arrivions was incorrect and soyons arrivés correct when:
The correct translation for "They need us to arrive before the ceremony begins" is "Ils ont besoin que nous arrivions avant le début de la cérémonie."
Explanation
Ils ont besoin que nous arrivions avant le début de la cérémonie
This phrase uses the subjunctive present (nous arrivions) of "arriver."
It expresses a requirement concerning a future action (our arriving) that must happen before a specific event (the ceremony starts).
This is the most natural and idiomatic way in French to say that someone needs you to arrive before a certain point in time.
Ils ont besoin que nous soyons arrivés avant le début de la cérémonie
This form uses the past subjunctive (nous soyons arrivés).
It emphasizes the state of having already arrived by the time the ceremony begins, which can sound overly formal, final, or focused on the end result.
In everyday French, this structure is less commonly used for planned requirements about the future.
Why?
French typically uses the present subjunctive ("nous arrivions") after verbs that express necessity or desire (like "avoir besoin que") unless you need to stress that the action will be completed before the reference point in the past or for a resultative state.
In the context of "They need us to arrive before the ceremony begins," the English meaning aligns exactly with the present subjunctive in French.
So, the most natural and correct answer is:
Ils ont besoin que nous arrivions avant le début de la cérémonie.
If your intent was, "They need us to have already arrived before the ceremony begins," you might use the past subjunctive, but that's not the usual reading of the English sentence.
I smell good(I took a shower)-je sens bon or I smell well( my nose is working properly)-je sens bien. Are either of this correct?
I've done this exercise twice. on the second attempt it said i got 0 correct when i got most of them correct.
Why is the conditional called 'present' when the stem is the same as the future tense
I had written this as plural: "différentes combinaisions lors des combats", but on listening again, what was said before it was clearly "à" rather than "aux", so I changed it to singular: "à différente combinaision lors de combats".
Since it is actually plural - which certainly makes more sense! - I cannot understand why it isn't "aux différentes combinaisions" ?
My go-to dictionary, Word Reference, gives 'tout l’ensemble’ and 'somme toute' as translations. One of the acceptable translations was 'en somme', which is close to what WR used. However, 'tout l’ensemble', which is what I chose, was not accepted. Should it be added?
The dictation exercise A Nature-inspired Sculptor includes the sentence Depuis que je suis petite, j’ai toujours ressenti une grande connexion avec la nature"
Is le passé composé rather than the present tense used in "j’ai toujours ressenti" because of the "toujours"?
[PS: there’s a small error in one of Céline’s answers below - "Ever since I was a little girl, in winter, we camp in the mountains"]
I don't understand why arrivions was incorrect and soyons arrivés correct when:
The correct translation for "They need us to arrive before the ceremony begins" is "Ils ont besoin que nous arrivions avant le début de la cérémonie."
Explanation
Ils ont besoin que nous arrivions avant le début de la cérémonie
This phrase uses the subjunctive present (nous arrivions) of "arriver."
It expresses a requirement concerning a future action (our arriving) that must happen before a specific event (the ceremony starts).
This is the most natural and idiomatic way in French to say that someone needs you to arrive before a certain point in time.
Ils ont besoin que nous soyons arrivés avant le début de la cérémonie
This form uses the past subjunctive (nous soyons arrivés).
It emphasizes the state of having already arrived by the time the ceremony begins, which can sound overly formal, final, or focused on the end result.
In everyday French, this structure is less commonly used for planned requirements about the future.
Why?
French typically uses the present subjunctive ("nous arrivions") after verbs that express necessity or desire (like "avoir besoin que") unless you need to stress that the action will be completed before the reference point in the past or for a resultative state.
In the context of "They need us to arrive before the ceremony begins," the English meaning aligns exactly with the present subjunctive in French.
So, the most natural and correct answer is:
Ils ont besoin que nous arrivions avant le début de la cérémonie.
If your intent was, "They need us to have already arrived before the ceremony begins," you might use the past subjunctive, but that's not the usual reading of the English sentence.
why is is J'habite Paris instead of Je habite Paris
Hello,
Why do we use etait allée below instead of est allée?
ex. Il a laissé sa voiture au garage après qu'elle était allée à la banque.
There was a question:
Je suis retourné me coucher après que tu es parti. (correct answer as per quiz)
Should it be "Je suis retourné me coucher après que tu etais parti?
The question is:
Invert ‘Tu t’es amusés.’ to be a question
= T’es tu amusés? Why is the ‘u’ not dropped in “tu” as it is followed by a verb that starts with a vowel?
Find your French level for FREE
And get your personalised Study Plan to improve it
Find your French level