Breakdown of Le succès dépend de la patience.
de
of
le succès
the success
dépendre
to depend
la patience
the patience
Questions & Answers about Le succès dépend de la patience.
Why does French say Le succès with le? In English we just say success without the.
In French, abstract nouns like succès, amour, patience, courage almost always take an article (usually le, la, or les) when they’re used in a general sense.
- Le succès dépend de la patience.
= Success depends on patience. (success in general)
If you removed le and said Succès dépend de la patience, it would sound wrong or very strange to a native speaker. French simply doesn’t like “bare” nouns the way English does.
So le succès here means success in general, not the particular success of one thing. Context tells you it’s a general statement.
What gender is succès, and how can I tell it’s masculine?