Breakdown of Déshydraté, il risquait d'avoir une insolation.
une
a / an (feminine)
il
he
avoir
to have
risquer de
to risk
déshydraté
dehydrated
l'insolation
the sunstroke (f)
Questions & Answers about Déshydraté, il risquait d'avoir une insolation.
Why is Déshydraté just floating at the beginning of the sentence without a phrase like because he was?
This is a detached participle phrase. At the start of a sentence, a past participle like déshydraté modifies the subject of the main clause (il) and often implies a cause. It is a concise, elegant way to express the idea of because he was dehydrated (parce qu'il était déshydraté) without needing the extra words.
If the subject were female, would Déshydraté need to change?
Why is there a d' before avoir? Can we just say risquait avoir?
In French, the verb risquer requires the preposition de when it is followed by an infinitive verb. So, the structure is always risquer de faire quelque chose. Since avoir starts with a vowel, de contracts to d'.
Why is the imperfect tense (risquait) used here instead of the passé composé (a risqué)?
The imperfect is used here to describe an ongoing state or condition in the background of the past. He was continuously in danger of getting sunstroke while he was dehydrated. Using the passé composé (a risqué) would sound more like a single, completed action where he took a specific, isolated risk.
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