Question 1

Why is it n'est instead of ne est?

Accepted Answer

The negative word ne drops its 'e' and gets an apostrophe when the verb starts with a vowel. Since the verb est starts with an 'e', ne becomes n'.

Question 2

Normally we say c'est, but here it's ce n'est pas. Where did the apostrophe in c'est go?

Accepted Answer

C'est is a combination of ce (it) and est (is). To make it negative, the ne ... pas structure must go around the verb. We have to separate ce and est to put ne right in front of the verb, giving us ce n'est pas.

Question 3

Why is the word order un problème difficile instead of un difficile problème?

Accepted Answer

In French, most adjectives come right after the noun they describe. So instead of saying 'a difficult problem' like in English, you arrange the words to say 'a problem difficult'.

Question 4

Why do we use un? Doesn't the 'e' at the end of problème mean it should be feminine?

Accepted Answer

While it is a good rule of thumb that words ending in 'e' are feminine, problème is a common exception. It is a masculine noun, so it takes the masculine word for 'a', which is un.

Ce n'est pas un problème difficile.

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