Learn French: Le robot montre un peu d'empathie dans la mesure où il comprend les gens. - The robot shows a little empathy insofar as it understands people.

Word

Le robot montre un peu d'empathie dans la mesure où il comprend les gens.

Meaning

The robot shows a little empathy insofar as it understands people.

Part of speech

sentence

Pronunciation

Course

French

Lesson

Condition and extent (dans la mesure où)

Breakdown of Le robot montre un peu d'empathie dans la mesure où il comprend les gens.

a little, a little bit of

Questions & Answers about Le robot montre un peu d'empathie dans la mesure où il comprend les gens.

Why does dans la mesure où take the indicative (comprend) here instead of the subjunctive?

Even though many complex conjunctions in French trigger the subjunctive, dans la mesure où (insofar as / to the extent that) states a fact or a condition that is considered true. Because it deals with reality rather than doubt or subjectivity, it is always followed by the indicative.

Could dans la mesure où be translated as 'since' or 'because' in this sentence?

Yes. While it translates literally to 'insofar as' or 'to the extent that,' in everyday French it is very often used to mean 'since' or 'seeing that.' It introduces a logical justification for why the robot shows empathy.

Why is it d'empathie and not de l'empathie?

This is a great refresher on quantities. After expressions of quantity like un peu, beaucoup, or trop, you always use a plain de (or d' before a vowel), dropping the definite article. So it is un peu d'empathie, just like you would say beaucoup d'eau.

Why use les gens for 'people' instead of les personnes?