Breakdown of Le souffleur tourne délicatement le verre de crainte de briser la bulle.
tourner
to turn
le verre
the glass / the drink
le
him, it (masculine direct object pronoun)
la
her, it (feminine direct object pronoun)
le souffleur
the glassblower
délicatement
delicately
de crainte de
for fear of
briser
to shatter
la bulle
the bubble
Questions & Answers about Le souffleur tourne délicatement le verre de crainte de briser la bulle.
Why is de crainte de followed by the infinitive briser here instead of using the subjunctive?
We use de crainte de plus an infinitive because the subject of both actions is the same person: the glassblower (le souffleur). If there were two different subjects (for example, 'he turns the glass for fear that someone else will break it'), you would have to use de crainte que plus the subjunctive.
What is the difference between using de crainte de and de peur de in this sentence?
Why does the adverb délicatement come directly after the verb tourne rather than at the end of the clause?
Could I use casser instead of briser for 'shattering'?
Yes, casser (to break) would be understood, but briser is a stronger word that specifically means to shatter, smash, or break into tiny pieces. It fits perfectly here because a fragile glass bubble would shatter dramatically rather than just snap or crack.
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