Breakdown of La barre se coince et le voyant ne fait que clignoter.
et
and
ne
not (used before the verb)
faire
to do, to make
se
himself, herself, themselves (reflexive)
que
only (restrictive 'ne... que')
clignoter
to blink
la barre
the bar
coincer
to jam
le voyant
the indicator light
Questions & Answers about La barre se coince et le voyant ne fait que clignoter.
How exactly does ne fait que clignoter translate to 'does nothing but blink'?
The structure ne faire que followed by an infinitive expresses an exclusive or continuous action. It literally translates to 'to do nothing but' or 'to only' do something. In this sentence, ne fait que frames the infinitive clignoter to emphasize that the indicator light is stuck in a continuous loop of blinking and doing absolutely nothing else.
Why use the reflexive se coince instead of est coincée for 'gets stuck'?
Is voyant the standard word for an indicator light?
Where would object pronouns go in a ne faire que structure?
If the infinitive verb at the end of the phrase takes an object pronoun, that pronoun goes immediately before the infinitive, not before fait. For example, if you wanted to say 'he does nothing but watch it', it would be il ne fait que le regarder.
Learn La barre se coince et le voyant ne fait que clignoter and more in French
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free