Breakdown of Crois-tu que nous puissions contrôler cette menace ?
tu
you (informal singular)
nous
we / us (object pronoun)
ce
this (before a noun)
pouvoir
to be able to / can
croire
to believe
que
that (introducing a clause)
contrôler
to control
la menace
the threat
Questions & Answers about Crois-tu que nous puissions contrôler cette menace ?
Why is puissions in the subjunctive here instead of the normal indicative pouvons?
The verb croire (to believe) usually takes the indicative in positive statements because it expresses certainty in the speaker's mind. However, when turned into a question (like crois-tu que...) or a negative statement, it introduces doubt. Because the speaker is questioning whether we can actually control the threat, that element of doubt triggers the subjunctive mood.
What is the base verb for puissions?
It is the present subjunctive form of pouvoir (to be able to / can) for the nous subject. The subjunctive stem for pouvoir is highly irregular: puiss-.
Why is contrôler left in the infinitive (dictionary) form?
It directly follows the conjugated verb puissions (can / are able to). In French, when a conjugated verb is followed by another verb completing its meaning, the second verb stays in the infinitive, much like in English: "we can control".
Could I ask this using est-ce que instead of crois-tu?
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