Question 1

Why is la used twice in la structure la plus étroite?

Accepted Answer

In French, when a superlative (the most / the least) comes after the noun, you must repeat the definite article (le, la, or les). So literally, you are saying 'the structure the most narrow'. You can see this rule again in the second half of the sentence with la vue la plus impressionnante.

Question 2

Could I change the word order to la plus étroite structure to avoid repeating la?

Accepted Answer

No, because the placement of the superlative depends on where the adjective normally goes. Because étroite (narrow) and impressionnante (impressive) are adjectives that naturally go after the noun, their superlatives must also go after the noun. You only use a single article when the adjective normally comes before the noun (like grande in la plus grande structure).

Question 3

Why does the second half of the sentence use il a (it has) instead of elle a, when we just talked about la structure?

Accepted Answer

The pronoun il refers back to the main subject of the sentence, ce gratte-ciel (this skyscraper), which is masculine. Even though the skyscraper is described as la structure (a feminine noun), the core subject possessing the view is still the masculine skyscraper.

Question 4

What does gratte-ciel literally mean?

Accepted Answer

Just like in English, it translates literally to 'skyscraper'! It is built from the verb gratter (to scratch or scrape) and the noun ciel (sky). Notice that the sentence uses ce (this) with it, which reminds us that it is a masculine noun.

Ce gratte-ciel est la structure la plus étroite, mais il a la vue la plus impressionnante.

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