Question 1

In English, we often say 'We think the company...', leaving out the word 'that'. Can I drop que in French too?

Accepted Answer

In English, it is perfectly fine to drop 'that' and simply say 'We think the company is going to fire the team.' However, in French, the linking word que is strictly required. You can never drop it when connecting a main clause to a subordinate clause.

Question 2

Since entreprise starts with a vowel, why doesn't que shorten to qu'?

Accepted Answer

The word que only drops its E and becomes qu' when the word immediately following it starts with a vowel or a silent H. Here, the word right after que is l'entreprise, which starts with the consonant L. That L acts as a buffer, so que stays exactly as it is.

Question 3

The translation says 'We think', but doesn't on mean 'one'? Why not use nous?

Accepted Answer

While nous is the standard word for 'we', in everyday spoken French, people almost exclusively use on to mean 'we'. Just remember that even when on means 'we', it always takes the singular verb form like il or elle (which is why we say on pense instead of on pensons).

Question 4

How does va licencier translate to 'is going to fire'?

Accepted Answer

This uses the near future tense, which expresses what is 'going to' happen. You form it just like in English: use the present tense of the verb aller (to go) — here it is va — followed by the full, unconjugated action verb licencier (to fire).

On pense que l'entreprise va licencier l'équipe.

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