Breakdown of Mon collègue a failli effacer le fichier.
avoir
to have
le collègue
the colleague
mon
my (mon, ma, mes)
le
him, it (masculine direct object pronoun)
le fichier
the file (digital)
effacer
to erase
faillir
to almost (do)
Questions & Answers about Mon collègue a failli effacer le fichier.
Why use a failli effacer instead of a presque effacé for 'almost deleted'?
While both translate to 'almost deleted,' faillir + infinitive specifically means a near miss—an event that didn't happen at all. Using a presque effacé might imply he actually started deleting it (perhaps erasing 90% of a document's contents) but stopped before finishing. A failli effacer makes it clear the deletion itself was entirely, but narrowly, avoided.
Can I use faillir in the present tense to say 'my colleague is almost deleting the file'?
No, when meaning 'to almost do something,' faillir is practically only used in past tenses, most commonly the passé composé (a failli). To say someone is 'almost' doing something right now, you would use a phrase like est sur le point de (is about to).
Do I need a preposition like de or à between a failli and effacer?
No preposition is needed. When used for near misses, faillir is followed directly by the infinitive of the action that was almost done. So, it is simply a failli effacer.
Are there other words for 'deleting' a computer file besides effacer?
Yes, supprimer is extremely common in the digital world and is usually the exact translation for the 'Delete' button on a keyboard or in a menu. However, effacer (which also means 'to erase') is equally natural and widely used for files.
How would this sentence change if the colleague were a woman?
The noun collègue is epicene, meaning its spelling does not change based on gender. You simply change the possessive adjective to match. To specify a female colleague, you would say Ma collègue a failli... instead of Mon collègue a failli....
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