Question 1

How would I rewrite this sentence to include non seulement... mais aussi?

Accepted Answer

You would place the conjunctions around the two direct objects being connected: Pour obtenir cette précision, il faut régler non seulement le balancier mais aussi l'engrenage. This emphasizes that adjusting the pendulum alone isn't enough; the gear must be adjusted too.

Question 2

Does the verb régler only mean to regulate?

Accepted Answer

While it translates to regulate here, régler is widely used in French to mean to adjust, to fix a problem, or to settle a bill. For instance, régler un problème means to sort out a problem, and régler l'addition means to pay the bill.

Question 3

Why is the infinitive obtenir used after pour instead of a conjugated verb?

Accepted Answer

In French, when you want to express in order to do something, you use pour followed directly by an infinitive. Prepositions like pour, de, and sans are generally followed by infinitives, unlike in English where we sometimes use -ing words after prepositions.

Question 4

Is engrenage strictly a mechanical term?

Accepted Answer

Literally, it means a gear or a system of gears. However, at a B2 level, you will often hear un engrenage used metaphorically to describe a vicious circle, a downward spiral, or a chain of events that is hard to escape.

Pour obtenir cette précision, il faut régler le balancier et l'engrenage.

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