Learn French: Il lit un magazine et il ne dit rien. - He is reading a magazine and he says nothing.

Il lit un magazine et il ne dit rien.

He is reading a magazine and he says nothing.

Breakdown of Il lit un magazine et il ne dit rien.

and

not (used before the verb)

lire

to read

Questions & Answers about Il lit un magazine et il ne dit rien.

What is the infinitive of lit?

It comes from the irregular verb lire (to read). In the present tense, the "he/she/it" form is il/elle/on lit. For "I" and "you", it ends in an 's': je lis and tu lis.

How does the verb dire (to say) work in this sentence?

Dit is the "he/she/it" form of the irregular verb dire. Notice how it follows a very similar pattern to lire for the singular forms: je dis, tu dis, il/elle/on dit.

Why is there no pas in il ne dit rien?

The negative structure ne ... rien means "nothing" or "not anything". It wraps around the verb just like ne ... pas, but it replaces pas entirely. Saying il ne dit pas rien would be an awkward double negative, just like saying "he doesn't say nothing" in English!

Do I pronounce the final "t" in lit and dit?

No, the final -t on both of these conjugated verbs is silent. You just pronounce the vowel sounds, so they sound like the English words "lee" and "dee".