Learn French: Ils font le jardin derrière la maison. - They are gardening behind the house.

Ils font le jardin derrière la maison.

They are gardening behind the house.

Breakdown of Ils font le jardin derrière la maison.

ils

they (masculine/mixed)

Questions & Answers about Ils font le jardin derrière la maison.

Why does Ils font mean "They are gardening"? Doesn't faire mean "to do" or "to make"?

Yes, faire generally means "to do" or "to make". In French, you often use faire plus a noun to describe an activity. Here, faire le jardin literally translates as "to do the garden", which is exactly how French speakers say "to do the gardening".

Is there a single verb for "to garden" in French, or do I always have to use faire?

There is a regular verb, jardiner, which means "to garden". You could say Ils jardinent, but Ils font le jardin is just as common, very much like choosing between "They garden" and "They are doing the gardening" in English.

How do I pronounce the verb font in this sentence? Do I say the t at the end?

No, the t at the end of font is silent. It rhymes exactly with sont (are) or ont (have). You just pronounce the nasal "on" sound.

Does the word derrière (behind) change if the noun after it is masculine or plural?

No, derrière is a preposition, which means it is an unchanging word. It stays exactly the same whether it is describing location near a feminine word like la maison (the house) or a masculine word like le bâtiment (the building).