Breakdown of Il nettoie le désordre de peur que cela ne la rende irritable.
il
he
le
him, it (masculine direct object pronoun)
nettoyer
to clean
la
her, it (feminine direct object pronoun)
cela
that
de peur que
for fear that
ne
expletive 'ne' (no negative meaning)
rendre
to make (+ adjective)
le désordre
the mess
irritable
irritable
Questions & Answers about Il nettoie le désordre de peur que cela ne la rende irritable.
Why do we use rendre here instead of faire to express making someone a certain way?
Why is there a ne before la rende when the English translation has no negative word?
This is a grammatical feature called the expletive ne. It is not a negative word and does not make the sentence negative. It often appears in formal French after certain expressions of fear or prevention, like de peur que (for fear that), to emphasize the feeling of wanting to avoid something.
Why is the verb rendre conjugated as rende in this sentence?
It is conjugated in the subjunctive mood. The conjunction de peur que (for fear that) always triggers the subjunctive because it expresses an emotion, doubt, or a hypothetical scenario rather than a concrete fact.
Why is the pronoun la used before the verb instead of lui?
The expression rendre + adjective takes a direct object because you are directly transforming the person or thing. la is the direct object pronoun for her. lui is an indirect object pronoun and is not used with this specific verb structure.
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