Breakdown of Nous n'avons qu'une machine, c'est pourquoi nous allons la réparer.
une
a / an (feminine)
nous
we / us (object pronoun)
avoir
to have
ne
not (used before the verb)
que
what (unstressed)
aller
to go
la
her, it (feminine direct object pronoun)
réparer
to repair
c'est pourquoi
that is why
la machine
the machine
Questions & Answers about Nous n'avons qu'une machine, c'est pourquoi nous allons la réparer.
Why use c'est pourquoi instead of just donc here?
Both express a consequence, but c'est pourquoi (that is why) is slightly more formal and emphatic. It explicitly points back to the reason just stated (having only one machine) to clearly justify the consequence (repairing it).
Could I use par conséquent in this sentence instead?
Why is there a n' before avons if the sentence isn't negative?
Why is the pronoun la placed before réparer and not before allons?
When you have a conjugated verb followed by an infinitive (an unconjugated verb ending in -er, -ir, or -re), the object pronoun goes directly in front of the infinitive it belongs to. We are repairing it (la refers to the feminine noun machine), so la goes right before réparer.
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