Je conseille souvent à mon voisin de cuisiner moins d’épices, car il les trouve trop fortes.

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Breakdown of Je conseille souvent à mon voisin de cuisiner moins d’épices, car il les trouve trop fortes.

• mon: my
• il: he
• souvent: often
• à: to
• de l': some
• de: of
• trop: too
• car: because
• cuisiner: to cook
• les: them
• trouver: to find
• l'épice: the spice
• le voisin: the neighbor
• conseiller: to advise
• moins: fewer
• fort: strong

Questions & Answers about Je conseille souvent à mon voisin de cuisiner moins d’épices, car il les trouve trop fortes.

Why do we use the structure “conseiller à quelqu’un de + infinitive” in this sentence?

In French, when giving advice with the verb conseiller, you must use the construction conseiller + à + person + de + infinitive. In our sentence, mon voisin is the person being advised and de cuisiner indicates what he is advised to do. This structure is essential to properly link the adviser with the advice itself.

What does “moins d’épices” mean, and why is it written this way?

“Moins d’épices” translates to “fewer spices” or “less spice” depending on context. The word moins means “less” or “fewer,” and it is followed by de when used with a noun. Since épices starts with a vowel sound, de contracts to d’. This construction indicates a reduction in the quantity or amount of spices.

Why is the direct object pronoun les used in “car il les trouve trop fortes”?

In this sentence, les replaces épices to avoid repetition. French requires the object pronoun to agree with the noun it substitutes. Because épices is plural, les is used as the direct object pronoun, and the adjective that follows (fortes) also agrees in gender (feminine) and number (plural) with épices.

Why does the adjective appear as “fortes” instead of “fort” at the end of the sentence?

The adjective fortes agrees with the noun it describes, which is épices. Since épices is a feminine plural noun, the adjective must take the feminine plural form, hence fortes. This agreement in both gender and number is a key feature of French adjective usage.

What role does the adverb souvent play, and why is it positioned where it is?

Souvent means “often” and it modifies the verb conseille. In French, adverbs of frequency like souvent typically follow the conjugated verb. This placement (after conseille) indicates how frequently the speaker gives advice.

How does the conjunction car function in this sentence?

Car is a coordinating conjunction meaning “because.” It connects the two parts of the sentence by providing a reason or explanation. The first part is the advice given (“Je conseille souvent à mon voisin de cuisiner moins d’épices”), and the second part (“il les trouve trop fortes”) explains why this advice is offered.