Log inSign up

Une telle dextérité demande des années.

Une telle dextérité demande des années.
Such dexterity takes years.
From Lesson 353:Indefinite adjectives of intensity (tel / telle)·French

Questions & Answers about Une telle dextérité demande des années.

Why is it Une telle instead of Telle une to match the English 'Such a'?
In French, when tel (or its feminine form telle) is used with a singular noun to mean 'such a,' the indefinite article must come before the adjective. You structure it literally as 'a such dexterity.'
Why is the feminine form telle used here?
Tel acts as an adjective and must agree in gender and number with the noun it modifies. Since dextérité is a feminine singular noun (like most nouns ending in -té), tel becomes telle.
Why use demande here instead of prend for 'takes'?
While you can use prendre for time (as in ça prend du temps), demander is highly natural when a skill or task 'requires' or 'demands' a certain amount of time, patience, or effort.
Why is it des années rather than les années?
You need the indefinite plural article des because it refers to an unspecified number of years. Using les would mean 'the years,' referring to specific years already mentioned or understood from context.

Learn Une telle dextérité demande des années 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
Start learning French →