Questions & Answers about Il est descendu pour chercher le harnais et le câblage.
Why does this sentence use est descendu instead of a descendu?
The verb descendre (to go down / to take down) changes its auxiliary verb depending on how it is used. Here, it is intransitive, meaning it does not take a direct object. He simply went down. When used intransitively as a verb of motion, it takes être. If he had taken something down, like a box, it would be transitive and take avoir (for example, Il a descendu la boîte).
Why is there no French word for 'for' after chercher?
In French, the verb chercher inherently means 'to look for' or 'to search for'. You do not need to add a preposition like pour after it. Adding one is a very common mistake for English speakers translating word-for-word.
Why is it le harnais and not l'harnais?
Is there a trick to remembering the gender of câblage?