Breakdown of Nous nous dépêchons, nous nous habillons maintenant !
nous
we / us (object pronoun)
maintenant
now
s'habiller
to get dressed
se dépêcher
to hurry
Questions & Answers about Nous nous dépêchons, nous nous habillons maintenant !
Why do we say nous nous twice in a row?
The first nous means "we" (the subject). The second nous is a reflexive pronoun, which in this case means "ourselves". Because se dépêcher (to hurry) and s'habiller (to get dressed) are reflexive verbs, you must include that second pronoun. Literally, you are saying "We hurry ourselves, we dress ourselves."
The dictionary says "to get dressed" is s'habiller. Where did the s' go in nous nous habillons?
The reflexive pronoun always changes to match the subject! The s' (a shortened form of se) is used for the infinitive dictionary form, as well as for the "he/she/they" forms. Since the subject here is nous (we), the reflexive pronoun must also change to nous (ourselves) to match it.
Do I pronounce the 's' at the end of the second nous in nous nous habillons?
The English translation uses "-ing" ("getting dressed"). Is there a special "-ing" verb form here?
No, French only has one present tense! Nous nous habillons can mean "we dress" or "we are getting dressed". Because of the word maintenant (now), the continuous "-ing" form makes the most sense in English, but the French verb form remains exactly the same.
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