Avant de partir, je mets mon permis dans mon sac.

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Breakdown of Avant de partir, je mets mon permis dans mon sac.

• mon: my
• dans: in
• avant de: before

Questions & Answers about Avant de partir, je mets mon permis dans mon sac.

Why is it avant de partir and not just avant partir?

In French, avant must be followed by de when the next verb is in the infinitive.

So:

• avant de partir = before leaving / before I leave
• not avant partir

This is a fixed pattern:

• avant de manger = before eating
• avant de dormir = before sleeping

So avant de + infinitive is the normal structure here.

Why is partir in the infinitive instead of something like avant que je pars?

French often uses the infinitive after avant de when the subject is the same as in the main clause.

Here, the person who is leaving is also the person who puts the permit in the bag:

• je mets = I put
• partir = to leave

So French prefers:

• Avant de partir, je mets... = Before leaving, I put...

If the subject changes, French usually uses avant que + a conjugated verb:

• Avant qu’il parte, je lui parle. = Before he leaves, I speak to him.

Why is it je mets and not je met?