Breakdown of Le public est sur le point d'applaudir bruyamment.
le public
the audience, public
applaudir
to applaud, to clap
être sur le point de
to be about to
bruyamment
loudly
Questions & Answers about Le public est sur le point d'applaudir bruyamment.
How is the adverb bruyamment formed here?
What does sur le point de mean?
It means 'about to' or 'on the verge of'. You use the expression être sur le point de followed by an infinitive verb (like applaudir here) to describe an action that is going to happen in the very immediate future.
Why is there a d' before applaudir?
It is part of the expression être sur le point de. Because the verb applaudir (to applaud) starts with a vowel, the preposition de contracts to d'.
Is public always singular in French, even though an audience is made up of many people?
Yes! Le public is a collective noun. Even though it describes a group of people, it is grammatically singular. You must always use the singular verb form with it (which is why we see est and not sont).