Question 1

Why does qui que trigger the subjunctive soyez here?

Accepted Answer

The phrase qui que translates to "whoever" in the sense of "no matter who." In French, expressions of concession like this (stating that a fact remains true regardless of a condition) require the subjunctive mood because the exact identity of the person is treated as indefinite or hypothetical. That's why we use soyez (the subjunctive of être) instead of the indicative êtes.

Question 2

Would it be correct to invert the verb and say qui que soyez-vous?

Accepted Answer

No, you shouldn't invert the subject and verb here. Even though the word qui is typically used to ask questions, the phrase qui que acts as a subordinating conjunction in this sentence, introducing a dependent clause. Therefore, you must use standard statement word order: subject followed by verb (qui que vous soyez).

Question 3

Where does the noun le videur (the bouncer) come from?

Accepted Answer

The word un videur is derived from the verb vider, which means "to empty." So, quite literally, a French bouncer is an "emptier"—the person whose job is to empty the venue of troublemakers!

Question 4

Is intransigeant used the same way as the English word "intransigent"?

Accepted Answer

Yes, they are exact cognates meaning "uncompromising" or refusing to bend the rules. Just keep in mind that it is a regular adjective, so it must agree with the noun it modifies. If the bouncer were female (la videuse), you would need to add an 'e' to make it intransigeante.

Qui que vous soyez, le videur reste intransigeant.

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