Question 1

Why is vivre translated as "are experiencing" instead of "living"?

Accepted Answer

While vivre literally means "to live", French speakers frequently use it to mean "to experience" or "to go through" a situation. So, nous vivons un événement perfectly translates to "we are experiencing an event."

Question 2

How do you form the nous form of the irregular verb vivre?

Accepted Answer

For the plural forms, the stem of vivre becomes viv-. You then add the regular present tense endings, giving us nous vivons (we live/are living), vous vivez, and ils/elles vivent.

Question 3

Since équipe is a feminine noun, why does the sentence use mon instead of ma?

Accepted Answer

Whenever a feminine word starts with a vowel or a silent h, you must use the masculine possessive adjectives (mon, ton, son). Ma équipe would have two vowels crashing into each other, so French uses mon équipe to make pronunciation smoother.

Question 4

Is formidable a negative word here, like "formidable" (intimidating) in English?

Accepted Answer

Not at all! Formidable is a common "false friend." In French, it is a very positive adjective that means "wonderful," "great," or "fantastic."

Question 5

The English translation says "we are experiencing." Why isn't there a word for "are" in the French sentence?

Accepted Answer

French does not have an equivalent to the English "-ing" tense. The simple present tense nous vivons translates to both "we experience" and "we are experiencing" depending on the context. You should never use être (to be) to try and translate "are doing" something!

Je félicite mon équipe parce que nous vivons un événement formidable.

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