Marie consacre le soir à chanter.

Marie devotes the evening to singing.

Breakdown of Marie consacre le soir à chanter.

• Marie: Marie
• chanter: to sing
• le soir: the evening
• à: to
• consacrer: to devote

Questions & Answers about Marie consacre le soir à chanter.

What does the verb consacrer mean in this sentence, and why is it used in the present tense?

In this context, consacrer means “to devote” or “to dedicate.” The present tense is used to indicate a habitual or current action—Marie regularly devotes her evening to singing.

Why is the definite article le used before soir in this sentence?

French often uses the definite article with general time expressions. Le soir doesn’t refer to one specific evening but rather to evenings in general, indicating a customary part of Marie’s routine.

Why is the verb chanter in the infinitive form instead of being conjugated?

After the preposition à in expressions like consacrer quelque chose à chanter, the following verb remains in its infinitive form. This is a fixed grammatical construction in French that indicates the purpose or activity to which the time is devoted.

What is the role of the preposition à in the sentence?

The preposition à links the time period (le soir) with the activity (chanter). It shows that the evening is specifically set aside for singing, making the connection between the period and its dedicated purpose.

Can you break down the overall structure of "Marie consacre le soir à chanter"?

Certainly. The sentence is structured as follows: • Subject: Marie
• Verb: consacre (present tense of consacrer)
• Direct Object: le soir (the time period being devoted)
• Prepositional Phrase: à chanter (indicating the activity for which the evening is dedicated)
This construction follows a common French pattern for expressing that someone regularly dedicates a period of time to a specific activity.