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L'espion vient d'infiltrer le quartier général.

L'espion vient d'infiltrer le quartier général.
The spy has just infiltrated the headquarters.
From Lesson 242:Subjunctive for negative condition (sans que)·French

Questions & Answers about L'espion vient d'infiltrer le quartier général.

Why does "vient d'infiltrer" mean "has just infiltrated" instead of "comes from infiltrating"?
When the verb venir (to come) is followed by de and an infinitive verb like infiltrer, it forms the recent past. This structure translates to "has just done" something. It only means "comes from" when followed by a place, like Il vient de Paris (He comes from Paris).
Why is "headquarters" translated as the singular "le quartier général"?
In English, "headquarters" always ends in an "s" and is often treated as plural. In French, le quartier général is a standard singular noun referring to a single command center. If there were multiple command centers, you would use the plural les quartiers généraux.
Is it possible to add the word "juste" here for emphasis?
Yes! You can say L'espion vient juste d'infiltrer to add extra emphasis, similar to saying "has only just this second infiltrated" in English. However, vient de already implies "has just" on its own, so juste is optional.

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