Question 1

Why does pas come before vérifié?

Accepted Answer

In the passé composé, the negative words ne and pas hug the helper verb, not the main verb. Here, they go around a (the helper verb), giving us n'a pas. The past participle (vérifié) always comes right after pas.

Question 2

Why is it written n'a instead of ne a?

Accepted Answer

Whenever ne is followed by a word starting with a vowel (like the helper verb a), the e is dropped and replaced with an apostrophe. This is called elision, and it makes the sentence flow more smoothly when spoken.

Question 3

Why is this translated as "did not check" instead of "has not checked"?

Accepted Answer

The French passé composé can translate to both the English present perfect ("has checked") and the simple past ("did check"). While n'a pas vérifié literally means "has not checked", English speakers much more commonly use "did not check" for completed past events. Both are correct!

Question 4

Does le client mean "client" or "customer"?

Accepted Answer

It means both! In English, we usually use "customer" for a shop and "client" for a professional service. French keeps it simple and uses le client (or la cliente for a woman) for both situations.

Le client n'a pas vérifié le prix.

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