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Paul loue un vélo parce que le métro est en grève.

Paul loue un vélo parce que le métro est en grève.
Paul rents a bike because the subway is on strike.
FromLesson 19inHardcore French

Breakdown of Paul loue un vélo parce que le métro est en grève.

être
to be
Paul
Paul
parce que
because
le vélo
the bike
louer
to rent
le métro
the subway
en grève
on strike

Questions & Answers about Paul loue un vélo parce que le métro est en grève.

What does loue mean here? Could it also mean to praise?
louer in French has two main meanings: to rent and to praise. In Paul loue un vélo, loue (3rd person singular present) means to rent, so Paul is renting a bike.
Why is there un vélo with an indefinite article instead of le vélo?
The indefinite article un is used when you refer to any single bike, not a specific one. If Paul were talking about a particular bike already known, you’d use the definite article le.
But why is le métro definite? Shouldn’t it be un métro?
When you talk about a transport system in general (the subway network), French uses the definite article. Thus le métro means “the subway” as a whole, not a single train.
What does être en grève mean, and how is it different from faire grève?
être en grève literally means to be on strike (describing the state), whereas faire grève means to go on strike or to strike (the action). Both are correct, but le métro est en grève emphasizes the subway’s current status.
Why is parce que used here to connect the clauses?
parce que is the most common conjunction for because in French. It introduces a cause clause. Alternatives include car (more formal/written) or puisque (used when the reason is already known).
Could we rewrite the sentence using à cause de instead of parce que?
Yes. You could say: Paul loue un vélo à cause de la grève du métro. Note that à cause de requires a noun phrase (la grève du métro) rather than a full clause.
Why doesn’t parce que trigger the subjunctive mood in the second clause?
Parce que expresses a factual cause, not doubt or emotion. Therefore, it always takes the indicative mood (est), not the subjunctive.
Why is the verb in the present tense (est en grève) here? Could we use a past tense?
The present tense (est en grève) describes an ongoing situation. If you wanted to refer to a past strike, you’d use the imparfait: le métro était en grève.
Is the word order in French when using parce que the same as in English?
Yes. The cause clause introduced by parce que normally follows the main clause, just like in English. You can also put the cause first for emphasis: Parce que le métro est en grève, Paul loue un vélo.
AI Language TutorTry it ↗
“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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