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Nous exigeons votre présence au cours.

Nous exigeons votre présence au cours.
We demand your presence in class.
From Lesson 189:Subjunctive for desires (vouloir que, aimer que)·French

Questions & Answers about Nous exigeons votre présence au cours.

Since this lesson is about the subjunctive, why isn't there a subjunctive verb here?
While exiger (to demand) is a verb of will that usually triggers the subjunctive in a que clause (like Nous exigeons que vous soyez présent), you can often avoid the subjunctive entirely by using a noun. Here, the noun votre présence (your presence) replaces the need for a full action clause.
Why is there an extra 'e' in exigeons?
Verbs ending in -ger, like exiger (to demand) and manger (to eat), need to keep a soft 'g' sound before the letters 'a' or 'o'. Adding an e before the -ons ending ensures we pronounce it correctly, avoiding a hard 'g' sound.
Why do we use au cours for 'in class' instead of dans la classe?
In French, the preposition à (which combines with le to make au) is used to express attending an event or a scheduled activity like a course (un cours). Dans la classe would specifically mean physically inside the classroom room itself, rather than attending the lesson.
I thought demander meant 'to demand'. Why use exiger?
Demander is a common false friend for English speakers; it actually just means 'to ask' or 'to request'. When you want to forcefully 'demand' or 'require' something with authority, exiger is the correct verb to use.

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