Breakdown of Les jupes qu'ils ont fait rallonger sont belles.
être
to be
ils
they (masculine/mixed)
avoir
to have
faire
to do, to make
Questions & Answers about Les jupes qu'ils ont fait rallonger sont belles.
Why doesn't fait agree with Les jupes? Shouldn't it be faites because the direct object comes before the verb?
Normally, yes! However, when faire is followed immediately by an infinitive to mean 'to have something done' (the causative construction), the past participle fait is always invariable. It never changes to agree with the object.
If we just wanted to say 'The skirts that they made are beautiful,' would we change fait?
Yes! Without the infinitive verb at the end, the normal agreement rules apply. 'The skirts that they made' would be Les jupes qu'ils ont faites, because the preceding direct object (qu' for les jupes) is feminine plural. The infinitive rallonger is what blocks the agreement in this sentence.
Why is rallonger in the infinitive here when English uses the past tense 'lengthened'?
English expresses this idea using 'to have' + object + past participle ('had the skirts lengthened'). French uses the causative structure: faire + infinitive. So instead of translating word-for-word, you must use the infinitive rallonger directly after fait.
Why does belles still agree and take the feminine plural form if fait doesn't?