Learn French: Quelque luminescent que soit ce poisson, l'obscurité le cache. - However luminescent this fish is, the darkness hides it.

Quelque luminescent que soit ce poisson, l'obscurité le cache.

However luminescent this fish is, the darkness hides it.

Breakdown of Quelque luminescent que soit ce poisson, l'obscurité le cache.

Questions & Answers about Quelque luminescent que soit ce poisson, l'obscurité le cache.

Why doesn't quelque have an 's' here to agree with the noun?

In this specific concessive structure (quelque + adjective + que), quelque acts as an adverb meaning "however." Because adverbs are invariable in French, quelque never takes an 's' here, regardless of whether the noun is plural or feminine.

Why is the word order que soit ce poisson rather than que ce poisson soit?

When using quelque... que followed by the subjunctive, it is very common and stylistically elegant to invert the noun subject and the verb. While que ce poisson soit is also grammatically correct, que soit ce poisson is the preferred word order for this formal structure.

Does quelque... que always require the subjunctive?

Yes, it always does. Just like bien que (although), this structure expresses a concession—an obstacle that doesn't prevent the main action from happening. This underlying sense of subjectivity and contrast triggers the subjunctive mood, which is why we use soit instead of est.

Would I use this exact phrase in a casual conversation?