Breakdown of Les passagers de la voie trois sont sur le point d'embarquer.
de
of / from / any (in negative sentences) / about (concerning)
trois
three
le passager
the passenger
les
them (direct object pronoun)
être sur le point de
to be about to
la voie
the track (railway)
embarquer
to board
Questions & Answers about Les passagers de la voie trois sont sur le point d'embarquer.
Why is d'embarquer in the infinitive here?
It follows the fixed expression être sur le point de (to be about to), which is the focus of this lesson. In French, prepositions like de are always followed by a verb in its infinitive (unconjugated) form. Here, de drops its vowel to become d' before the vowel in embarquer.
How is sont sur le point d'embarquer different from just saying vont embarquer?
While ils vont embarquer is the near future meaning "they are going to board" (which could happen in ten minutes or an hour), using être sur le point de is much more immediate. It emphasizes that the action is imminent, exactly like saying "are about to" or "are on the verge of" in English.
Why does the sentence use de la voie trois instead of just de voie trois?
In French, you typically need the definite article (la) before the noun voie (track or platform), even when attaching a specific number to it. It translates literally as "the passengers of the track three".
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