Breakdown of Elle s'est fait escroquer à cause de ce piège.
être
to be
elle
she
ce
this (before a noun)
à cause de
because of
se faire
to get oneself
escroquer
to swindle
le piège
the trap
Questions & Answers about Elle s'est fait escroquer à cause de ce piège.
How does the se faire + infinitive structure work here to mean 'got swindled'?
In French, the structure se faire followed by an infinitive is used to express getting something done to yourself, or having an action happen to you (often a negative one). Here, se faire + escroquer literally means 'to make oneself swindled', but it translates naturally as 'to get swindled'.
Since the subject is Elle, why isn't fait spelled faite with an 'e' at the end?
This is a special exception for this exact structure! When the past participle fait is followed immediately by an infinitive (like escroquer), it never changes to agree with the subject or the object. It stays permanently locked as fait, even when the subject is feminine or plural.
Why use à cause de instead of parce que for 'because'?
You must use à cause de when 'because of' is followed by a noun or pronoun (here, the noun phrase ce piège). You use parce que when 'because' is followed by a full sentence with a subject and a verb. As a bonus, à cause de usually carries a negative tone, which fits perfectly with falling for a trap!
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