Breakdown of L'oiseau venait de voler grâce à un fil invisible.
un
a / an (masculine)
venir
to come
l'oiseau
the bird (m)
voler
to fly
grâce à
thanks to
de
to (introducing an infinitive after a verb)
le fil
the thread
invisible
invisible
Questions & Answers about L'oiseau venait de voler grâce à un fil invisible.
Why do we use the imparfait venait here to say the bird 'had just' flown?
The structure venir de followed by an infinitive means 'to have just done' something. When we put venir in the present tense, it means someone 'has just' done it. To set this in the past ('had just flown'), we must use the imparfait tense (venait). This is the standard way to describe an immediately preceding action in a past narrative.
Could I use à cause de instead of grâce à to say 'because of an invisible thread'?
Why is the adjective invisible placed after the noun fil?
In French, most adjectives go after the noun they describe. The main exceptions are short, common adjectives describing Beauty, Age, Number, Goodness, or Size (often remembered as BANGS). Because invisible does not fit into those categories, it follows the standard rule and comes directly after fil.
Does fil always mean 'thread'?
Not always! Depending on the context, un fil can mean a thread, a string, a wire, or even a storyline. In the context of a magic trick or making a prop bird fly, it usually translates to an invisible thread or wire.
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