You just have to watch all the movies

Andy N.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

You just have to watch all the movies

Hi. In the week 19 B1 writing test the above is translated as: Il n’y a qu’à regarder tous les films. I can understand 'you only have to watch' bit but please what purpose does the 'y' pronoun play here please? [And as an unrelated aside could this sentence not be simply said as: Vous devez juste regarder tous les films. ]
Asked 7 years ago
AurélieNative French expert teacher in KwiziqCorrect answer
Bonjour Andy !

In this case, it's actually a variant of the expression "il y a" (there is/are) which is used:
"il n'y a qu'à + infinitif" meaning "It's enough to + verb" (Literally "there is only/just to + infinitif).

In this context, the best alternative with "vous" would actually be:
"Vous n'avez qu'à regarder tous les films." (I've now added it to the test answers)

I hope that's helpful!
Andy N.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor
Thanks Aurélie!

You just have to watch all the movies

Hi. In the week 19 B1 writing test the above is translated as: Il n’y a qu’à regarder tous les films. I can understand 'you only have to watch' bit but please what purpose does the 'y' pronoun play here please? [And as an unrelated aside could this sentence not be simply said as: Vous devez juste regarder tous les films. ]

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