Learn French: Il s'agit de chercher les manteaux à réparer. - It is a matter of looking for the coats to repair.

Il s'agit de chercher les manteaux à réparer.

It is a matter of looking for the coats to repair.

Breakdown of Il s'agit de chercher les manteaux à réparer.

it is about, it is a matter of

Questions & Answers about Il s'agit de chercher les manteaux à réparer.

How does the à réparer construction work here? Doesn't it mean "to repair"?

This is the passive infinitive construction. In French, putting à between a noun (les manteaux) and an infinitive (réparer) indicates that the action needs to be done to the noun. While we often say "coats to repair" in English, the French literally means "coats to be repaired".

Could we use pour instead of à here, like les manteaux pour réparer?

No, because pour réparer would mean "in order to repair [something else]". Using à connects the verb directly to the noun receiving the action, making it passive. It shows that the coats themselves are the items that need fixing.

What exactly does il s'agit de mean in this context?

Il s'agit de is an impersonal expression meaning "it's a matter of", "it comes down to", or "it's about". It is frequently used to define a task, objective, or the main point of a situation. It is always followed by de, which links it to the infinitive chercher.

The English translation says "looking for". Why is there no French word for "for" after chercher?

The French verb chercher inherently means "to look for" or "to seek" all on its own. Adding a word like pour after it is a common trap for English speakers, but the "for" is already built directly into the verb!