Breakdown of Après le match, tout son corps était fatigué.
être
to be
fatigué
tired
le match
the match / the game
son
his/her/its (son, sa, ses)
tout
all, everything
après
after
le corps
the body
Questions & Answers about Après le match, tout son corps était fatigué.
Why is it tout son corps and not son tout corps like "his whole body" in English?
In French, the word tout (meaning "all" or "whole") is placed before the determiner, such as an article or a possessive adjective. You literally say "all his body" (tout son corps) instead of "his whole body". You see the same pattern in phrases like toute la journée (the whole day).
Why use the imperfect tense (était) here instead of the passé composé (a été)?
The imperfect tense is used for descriptions, background information, and ongoing states in the past. Here, était fatigué describes his ongoing physical condition after the match, rather than a single, completed action or a sudden change in state.
Does the word corps always have an "s" at the end, even in the singular?
If the sentence were about a woman ("her whole body"), would the French translation change?
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