Question 1

Why is soit used here instead of est?

Accepted Answer

Soit is the subjunctive form of être. We use it here because the main verb doutent que (doubt that) expresses uncertainty, which is a classic trigger for the subjunctive mood.

Question 2

How would the sentence and meaning change if we used the reflexive se doutent que instead?

Accepted Answer

It would change the grammar and flip the meaning! Se douter que means "to suspect" or "to have a strong feeling that" something is true. Because it expresses certainty rather than doubt, it triggers the indicative mood. The sentence would be: Ils se doutent que cette imitation est parfaite (They suspect that this imitation is perfect).

Question 3

Could I shorten this to just Ils doutent de cette imitation?

Accepted Answer

You could, but it slightly changes what you are saying. Douter de is used when you are directly doubting a noun ("They doubt this imitation"). Our sentence uses douter que because it introduces a full descriptive clause with its own verb ("...that this imitation is perfect").

Question 4

I see that cette and parfaite are feminine. Is there a rule to remember the gender of imitation?

Accepted Answer

Yes, it's a very reliable rule: almost all French nouns ending in -tion are feminine. Because imitation is feminine, any words modifying it—like the demonstrative adjective cette and the descriptive adjective parfaite—must be in their feminine forms.

Ils doutent que cette imitation soit parfaite.

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