ELONIO
Log inSign up

On sera en congé sabbatique à Rome pour un an.

On sera en congé sabbatique à Rome pour un an.
We will be on sabbatical leave in Rome for a year.
From Lesson 359:Intended future duration (pour)·French

Questions & Answers about On sera en congé sabbatique à Rome pour un an.

Why does this sentence use pour instead of pendant to say 'for a year'?
This is the core rule for future intended duration. In French, pendant is the default word for 'for' when talking about how long an action lasts. However, when you are stating a planned, scheduled duration for a future event (indicated here by the future tense sera), you switch to pour.
Why is there no article like un after en in en congé sabbatique?
The preposition en is rarely followed by an article. When en introduces a state of being or condition—such as en vacances (on vacation), en grève (on strike), or en congé (on leave)—the noun phrase acts almost like an adjective describing your status. Therefore, no article is needed, and you cannot translate the English 'on a' literally.
Could I say pour une année instead of pour un an?
Yes, but it changes the nuance. Un an is used as a simple factual unit of time to state the length of the duration. Using une année would emphasize the experience, feeling, or events of that year. For simply stating the scheduled length of a stay, un an is the most natural and standard choice.
Since on takes a singular verb (sera), would adjectives matching it stay singular too?
Not necessarily! While on always takes the third-person singular verb conjugation, any adjectives or past participles must agree with the actual people being referred to in the context. If on means 'we' and includes multiple people, you would add plural endings to any following adjectives, such as On sera prêts (We will be ready).

Learn On sera en congé sabbatique à Rome pour un an and more in French

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free
Start learning French →