Present or Past Tense
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William C.Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor
Present or Past Tense
Why are there different tenses? Past tense in English but present tense in French.
This question relates to:French lesson "Ce/cet/cette and ces = this/that and these/those (French Demonstrative Adjectives)"
Asked 7 years ago
Ron T. Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
Bonjour William,
If I am understanding your question correctly, the answer will have to do with syntax structure difference. There are several instances where French syntax is nothing like English syntax. A French teacher that I had loved to tell the class that «French is not simply English translated into French». By that she meant that one cannot simply translate an English sentence into French on a word-for-word basis, phrasing is different as is adjective placement and a couple of other differences.
J'espère que cela vous aiderait.
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