Learn French: En admettant que l'accusé soit coupable, nous devons le prouver. - Assuming that the accused is guilty, we must prove it.

En admettant que l'accusé soit coupable, nous devons le prouver.

Assuming that the accused is guilty, we must prove it.

Breakdown of En admettant que l'accusé soit coupable, nous devons le prouver.

être

to be

nous

we / us (object pronoun)

devoir

to have to / must

him, it (masculine direct object pronoun)

Questions & Answers about En admettant que l'accusé soit coupable, nous devons le prouver.

Why is soit in the subjunctive here?

The phrase en admettant que (assuming that) introduces a hypothetical situation, not a confirmed fact. Like many expressions of hypothesis or supposition, it requires the following verb to be in the subjunctive mood, which is why we use soit instead of the indicative est.

Could I just use si (if) instead of en admettant que?

You could say si l'accusé est coupable, but en admettant que adds a stronger rhetorical nuance. It means you are conceding a point purely for the sake of argument, much like saying "Assuming for a moment that he is guilty..." It is a very natural phrasing for debates or analyzing a situation.

What exactly does the le replace in nous devons le prouver?

Here, le is a neutral direct object pronoun. Instead of replacing a specific masculine noun, it stands in for the entire previous idea: the fact that the accused is guilty. In English, it translates neatly to the "it" in "we must prove it."

Why does en admettant que use the present participle (admettant) instead of a conjugated verb?

The en + present participle forms the gerund (le gérondif). While similar conditional phrases like à supposer que use a preposition plus an infinitive, en admettant que literally translates to "in admitting that" or "by admitting that," which has become a fixed expression meaning "assuming that."