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Nous avions regardé l’horloge plusieurs fois avant de réaliser qu’elle était en retard.

Nous avions regardé l’horloge plusieurs fois avant de réaliser qu’elle était en retard.
We had looked at the clock several times before realizing it was running late.
FromLesson 15inHardcore French

Breakdown of Nous avions regardé l’horloge plusieurs fois avant de réaliser qu’elle était en retard.

être
to be
nous
we
avant
before
de
of
en retard
late
que
that
réaliser
to realize
plusieurs
several
regarder
to look
l’horloge
the clock
elle
it

Questions & Answers about Nous avions regardé l’horloge plusieurs fois avant de réaliser qu’elle était en retard.

What does the plus-que-parfait form nous avions regardé indicate in this sentence?
It shows that the action of looking at the clock (done several times) was completed before another past event—the moment we realized that the clock was late. This tense is used to set up a sequence where one past action precedes another.
Why is the phrase avant de réaliser followed by an infinitive verb rather than a conjugated form?
In French, when you want to express that one action happens before another, you use the construction avant de followed by an infinitive. Here, avant de réaliser means “before realizing,” which clearly indicates that the realization came after the repeated act of checking the clock.
What does l’horloge refer to, and why is it used instead of a word like la montre?
L’horloge refers to a clock—typically one that is fixed on a wall or located in a public or institutional setting. La montre, on the other hand, is used for a wristwatch. The choice of l’horloge clarifies that the object being observed is a clock rather than a personal timepiece.
What does the phrase en retard mean in this context?
En retard means “late” or “behind schedule.” In the sentence, it tells us that the clock was not showing the correct time, implying that it was running slower than it should be or was out of sync with the correct time.
How does the sentence structure help illustrate the sequence of events?
The structure uses the plus-que-parfait (nous avions regardé) to describe an action that was completed before a later event. Then, the infinitive construction after avant de (i.e., avant de réaliser) indicates that the realization that the clock was late came only after multiple glances at it. This clearly establishes the chronological order of events in the past.
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“How does grammatical gender work in French?”
Every French noun is either masculine or feminine, and this affects the articles and adjectives used with it. "Le" is used with masculine nouns and "la" with feminine ones. Adjectives also change form to match — for example, "petit" (masc.) becomes "petite" (fem.).

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