Learn French: Ils se promènent devant la nouvelle boutique. - They are taking a walk in front of the new shop.

Ils se promènent devant la nouvelle boutique.

They are taking a walk in front of the new shop.

Breakdown of Ils se promènent devant la nouvelle boutique.

ils

they (masculine/mixed)

Questions & Answers about Ils se promènent devant la nouvelle boutique.

Why does promènent have a grave accent (è) when the infinitive se promener does not?

se promener is a stem-changing verb. For most subjects, including ils, the unaccented e changes to è. This changes the pronunciation to a clear 'eh' sound. However, for nous and vous, it keeps the original e (like in nous nous promenons).

Do I pronounce the -ent at the end of promènent?

No, it is completely silent. In French, the -ent ending on verbs for ils and elles is never pronounced. You just pronounce the word like 'pro-men'.

Why do we need the reflexive pronoun se here? Couldn't we just say Ils promènent?

The verb for taking a stroll for your own enjoyment is the reflexive se promener. If you leave out the se, the verb means to walk something else. For example, Ils promènent le chien means 'They walk the dog', but Ils se promènent means 'They are taking a walk'.

I always mix up devant and avant. How do I know which one to use here?