ELONIO
Log inSign up

Je vois le marin amarrer le navire dans le port.

Je vois le marin amarrer le navire dans le port.
I see the sailor mooring the ship in the harbor.
From Lesson 256:Verbs of perception with infinitives·French

Questions & Answers about Je vois le marin amarrer le navire dans le port.

The English translation says "mooring", so why does the French sentence use the infinitive amarrer instead of a participle like amarrant?
In French, verbs of perception like voir (to see), entendre (to hear), and sentir (to feel/smell) are followed by an infinitive to express an action you observe. While English often uses an "-ing" verb ("I see him mooring"), French requires the infinitive: Je vois le marin amarrer... (literally "I see the sailor to moor...").
If I wanted to say "I see him mooring the ship", where would the pronoun go?
The object pronoun goes before the verb of perception, not before the infinitive. You would say Je le vois amarrer le navire. This is a special rule for verbs of perception; in most other verb+infinitive structures, the pronoun goes right before the infinitive.
Could I change the word order and put the infinitive before the sailor?
Yes! With verbs of perception, you can actually put the noun subject either before or after the infinitive. Both Je vois le marin amarrer... and Je vois amarrer le marin... are grammatically correct. However, putting the person first is usually clearer here because the infinitive has its own direct object (le navire).
What is the difference between un navire and un bateau?
Un bateau is the everyday, general word for any boat, from a tiny rowboat to a ferry. Un navire specifically refers to a large, sea-going vessel or ship. Using navire here emphasizes the impressive size of the ship being moored.
Why use dans le port instead of au port?
Both are grammatically fine, but they paint slightly different pictures. Dans le port (in the harbor) emphasizes the physical, enclosed body of water where the ship is currently floating and being tied up. Au port (at the port) treats the port more as a general destination or point on a map.

Learn Je vois le marin amarrer le navire dans le port and more in French

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free
Start learning French →