Breakdown of Un espion discret désactive souvent l'alarme.
un
a / an (masculine)
souvent
often
l'alarme
the alarm (f)
l'espion
the spy (m)
discret
discreet
désactiver
to deactivate
Questions & Answers about Un espion discret désactive souvent l'alarme.
Why does souvent come after the verb, unlike the English "often deactivates"?
In French, short adverbs that modify a conjugated verb (like souvent, meaning "often") almost always go directly after that verb. You cannot put them before the verb like we do in English.
Why is discret placed after espion?
Unlike English, most French adjectives go after the noun they describe. The main exceptions are short, common adjectives related to Beauty, Age, Goodness, or Size (often remembered by the acronym "BAGS"). Since discret doesn't fall into those categories, it follows the standard rule and comes after espion.
Is there a liaison between Un and espion?
My current lesson is about "sans que" and the subjunctive. Why isn't the subjunctive used here?
This specific sentence is just stating a regular fact, so it uses the standard present indicative tense (désactive). You only trigger the subjunctive when you add a specific conjunction of condition or manner like sans que (for example, if the sentence were "He enters without the alarm going off").
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