Question 1

Why is toujours placed between avons and fait?

Accepted Answer

In compound tenses like the passé composé, short and common adverbs (like toujours, bien, déjà, and beaucoup) usually go directly between the auxiliary verb (avons) and the past participle (fait). Unlike English, you shouldn't put this kind of adverb at the end of the sentence.

Question 2

Why does the French sentence use fait (made/done) instead of a form of avoir (to have)?

Accepted Answer

In French, the idiomatic expression for having a nightmare is faire un cauchemar (literally, to make a nightmare). Because this sentence is in the passé composé, we use the past participle of faire, which is fait.

Question 3

Since the English translation says 'We always had nightmares,' why aren't we using the imparfait tense (faisions)?

Accepted Answer

Both are actually possible depending on the context! If you are stating a completed fact about a specific, bounded time in the past (like during a specific camping trip), the passé composé (avons toujours fait) works perfectly. If you were describing an ongoing, habitual state in your childhood without a specific timeframe, you would use the imparfait (Nous faisions toujours des cauchemars).

Question 4

Why do we use des here instead of les?

Accepted Answer

Des is the plural indefinite article, used here because you are talking about having nightmares in general (some nightmares). If you used les, it would mean 'the nightmares,' which implies specific nightmares that you and the listener have already talked about.

Nous avons toujours fait des cauchemars.

Breakdown of Nous avons toujours fait des cauchemars.

Questions & Answers about Nous avons toujours fait des cauchemars.

Learn Nous avons toujours fait des cauchemars and more in French