Breakdown of Puis, prends un clou et un marteau.
et
and
prendre
to have (a meal/drink) / to take
puis
then, next
le marteau
the hammer
le clou
the nail
Questions & Answers about Puis, prends un clou et un marteau.
What is the difference between puis and ensuite here?
Both mean "then" or "next" and are often interchangeable when listing instructions. However, puis can only be used at the beginning of the clause to link it to the previous step, exactly as it does in this sentence.
Could I put puis at the end of this sentence instead?
Why is there no subject pronoun like tu before prends?
This is the imperative mood, which is used to give commands or step-by-step instructions. Just like in English, you drop the subject pronoun for commands. Instead of saying tu prends (you take), you simply say prends (take).
I thought we were supposed to drop the "s" at the end of tu commands. Why does prends still have one?
You are remembering a good rule, but it only applies to "-er" verbs! For example, parler becomes parle in the imperative form. Since prendre (to take) is an "-re" verb, it keeps its standard present tense spelling for the tu command form, which is prends.
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