Breakdown of J'ai failli formater le disque dur et faire une crise cardiaque !
je
I
une
a / an (feminine)
et
and
avoir
to have
faire
to do, to make
le
him, it (masculine direct object pronoun)
faillir
to almost (do)
formater
to format
le disque dur
the hard drive
la crise cardiaque
the heart attack
Questions & Answers about J'ai failli formater le disque dur et faire une crise cardiaque !
Why does j'ai failli mean 'I almost'?
Why is the second verb faire in the infinitive instead of the passé composé (j'ai fait)?
The opening j'ai failli applies to both verbs in the sentence. Just as formater is in the infinitive because it follows failli, faire stays in the infinitive too. It translates to 'I almost formatted... and (I almost) had...'.
Could I just use presque and say j'ai presque formaté?
Yes, j'ai presque formaté is grammatically correct and means the same thing. However, for unintended actions, accidents, or near disasters, faillir + infinitive is the most natural and idiomatic choice in French.
Why do we use the verb faire for 'having' a heart attack?
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