Breakdown of Les pirouettes que j'ai vu faire étaient magnifiques.
je
I
être
to be
avoir
to have
faire
to do, to make
voir
to see
le
him, it (masculine direct object pronoun)
magnifique
magnificent
que
that (introducing a clause)
la pirouette
the pirouette
Questions & Answers about Les pirouettes que j'ai vu faire étaient magnifiques.
Why doesn't vu agree with Les pirouettes here? Shouldn't it be vues?
This is the exact exception for verbs of perception (like voir and entendre) followed by an infinitive! Normally, the past participle agrees with a preceding direct object. However, with this structure, it only agrees if that object is the one actually performing the action of the infinitive. Since the pirouettes are not doing the action (someone else is doing the pirouettes), vu does not agree and stays invariable.
What would a sentence look like where vu does agree before an infinitive?
Why does the French use the active verb faire when the English translation says 'performed' (which feels passive)?
French often uses an active infinitive after a verb of perception where English prefers a passive participle. Literally, the French says 'The pirouettes that I saw to do.' We translate it as 'saw performed' or 'saw done' because 'saw do' sounds unnatural in English.
Why is étaient in the imparfait (imperfect) tense rather than the passé composé?
The imparfait is used to describe states, conditions, or physical appearances in the past. Because you are describing a characteristic of the pirouettes (that they were magnificent) rather than an action with a clear beginning and end that moves the plot forward, étaient is the correct choice.
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