Breakdown of Le conte est illustré par ce peintre.
être
to be
ce
this (before a noun)
par
by, through / out of (motive)
le conte
the tale
le peintre
the painter
illustrer
to illustrate
Questions & Answers about Le conte est illustré par ce peintre.
How do we know this sentence is in the passive voice?
Just like in English, the French passive voice uses the verb être (to be) combined with a past participle. Here, est and illustré work together to show that the tale is receiving the action rather than doing it.
Does the past participle illustré need to agree with anything?
Yes, in the passive voice, the past participle always agrees in gender and number with the subject. Because Le conte is a masculine singular noun, illustré takes no extra endings. If the subject were feminine, like L'histoire, it would become est illustrée.
Why do we use par to say by in this sentence?
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