Breakdown of J’ai tellement de choses à faire ce soir que je ne sais pas par où commencer.
je
I
avoir
to have
ne ... pas
not
le soir
the evening
faire
to do
où
where
commencer
to start
que
that
savoir
to know
tellement
so
la chose
the thing
par
by
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Questions & Answers about J’ai tellement de choses à faire ce soir que je ne sais pas par où commencer.
What does tellement de mean, and why is it used in this sentence?
Tellement de roughly translates to "so many" or "so much" in English. In this sentence, it emphasizes the overwhelming number of tasks the speaker has. It intensifies the situation, indicating that there are far too many things to do.
How does the que function in the structure "tellement ... que ..." found here?
In French, the structure "tellement ... que ..." is used to express a cause-and-effect relationship similar to "so ... that ..." in English. The word que introduces the consequence of having too many tasks—in this case, the speaker’s inability to decide where to begin.
What role does à faire play in the phrase "de choses à faire"?
The phrase à faire is an infinitive construction that modifies the noun choses. It means "to do", so "de choses à faire" translates as "things to do." This construction specifies the nature of the things, indicating that these are tasks waiting to be completed.
What does the clause "je ne sais pas par où commencer" convey?
This clause translates to "I don't know where to start." It expresses that the speaker feels overwhelmed by the sheer number of tasks. The structure implies a sense of confusion or indecision about which task should be approached first.
How is negation expressed in "je ne sais pas par où commencer", and why is par où used?
French negation is typically formed by placing ne before the verb and pas after it—here, ne sais pas means "do not know." The expression par où is idiomatic and translates literally to "from where," but in context, it means "where." Together, the phrase effectively communicates "I don't know where to start."
Can you break down the overall sentence structure and explain its components?
Certainly. The sentence is composed of two main parts:
- Main clause: "J’ai tellement de choses à faire ce soir"
This part sets up the scenario by explaining that the speaker has a massive list of tasks to complete tonight. Result clause: "que je ne sais pas par où commencer"
This segment shows the effect of having so many tasks—it leads to the speaker feeling overwhelmed and unsure about where to begin.The entire sentence uses the "tellement ... que ..." construction to show that the excessive number of tasks directly results in uncertainty about starting them.