Comment ça se fait ? / Comment se fait-il que... ? = How come? / How is it that...?

Hi John, 

if you examine the lesson carefully you will see toward the end that the correct answer is:

Comment se fait-il que.... OR Comment ça se fait que...

The answer "comment cela se fait-il..." is grammatically not correct even though sometimes used colloquially.

-- Chris (not a native speaker). 

I realize that in the beginning of the lesson it seems to say that "comment cela se fait-il?" is more elegant. However this isn't born out later and i. The examples. 

I guess this should be clarified in the lesson. 

-- Chris. 

I think the point is that "comment cela se fait-il?"  is used on its own, not when followed by que ...

Yes, I know. But that needs to be stated more clearly. 

OK, but I thought the lesson was quite clear on the distinction between the phrase on its own, and when followed by a conjugated verb.

If I may add to this debate -

Comment (cela)se fait-il que Pauline porte cette robe? 

Comment ça se fait que Pauline porte cette robe ?

Pauline porte cette robe, comment ça se fait ?

are all  correct, the first one sounds more elegant and stilted to me .

In spoken French you would use the latter two.

Hope this helps!

Bonjour Jennifer !

You wouldn't say "Comment cela se fait que" because "cela" is actually more elegant, "higher standard" than "ça".
Therefore, when you choose to use "cela" you will also use the more elegant question form that is the inverted form in French:
"Comment cela se fait-il que ?"
And in the elegant form, you can also choose to drop "cela" altogether, as it's repeated with "il":
"Comment se fait-il que ?" 

I hope that's helpful!
À bientôt !

Bonjour Johnny !

"Comment cela se fait que ... ?" can indeed be used by some French people, however it's grammatically incorrect as the way to construct the elegant form is through the use of the inversion "-il", and NOT cela.

You can also encounter  "Comment cela se fait-il que ... ?" which is simply redundant, as it literally means "How come this that ...?"

However, given the fact that some people do use that incorrect form, I decided to change our marking to Half Correct, as we still aim to teach the correct French ;)

I hope that's helpful!
À bientôt !

Sorry, typo: "Comment ça se fait qu'il faille Le subjonctif avec cette construction?"

Hint: "fait que"

Thank you, Christopher. I googled the expression and found this: http://bdl.oqlf.gouv.qc.ca/bdl/gabarit_bdl.asp?id=3650 However, I have the impression that it is mostly the first case (faire que + indicatif) that is applicable here. Is it because it is a question that it turns into subjonctif?

I'm not a teacher but I would say because it expresses doubt/uncertainty. One of the triggers for subjunctive is the lack of certainty (but there are always exceptions. It's covered a lot in the B2 level tests. Other triggers are emotions, necessity, possibility, wants/desires. You can find great examples here and on https://www.lawlessfrench.com/.

Thank you, Christopher, for the link to https://www.lawlessfrench.com. I found many interesting things there! Just not the answer to my question. But I'll keep searching... :-)

I would not lose sleep over the subjunctive if you're not at an advanced level. It's not always evident because there are many situations that cause it to be used. French speakers will know when you missed one and they will praise you when you get it right. I've been working on it for 5 years and it's just now starting to make sense to me. For now all you need to know is there has to be a "que" and from that you should add one of the conditions that requires subjunctive until you master that particular condition. Kwiziq is great at teaching this as it will do exactly what I described above. For example, in my current tests I've been drilled repeated on il faut que to the point I dream about it. I still don't quite understand your original question, it's not clear what you're asking is causing the subjunctive but just the fact that it's posting a question implies uncertainty which normally requires subjunctive. Good luck