Relis ce paragraphe encore une fois avant de l’envoyer.

Questions & Answers about Relis ce paragraphe encore une fois avant de l’envoyer.

Why is the sentence starting with Relis instead of Tu relis?

Because Relis is in the imperative, the form used for commands or instructions.

In French, subject pronouns like tu, nous, and vous are usually left out in the imperative:

  • Tu relis = you reread / you are rereading
  • Relis ! = Reread!

So Relis ce paragraphe... means someone is being told to do it.


What verb is relis from, and why doesn’t it look like a regular -er verb?

Relis comes from the verb relire, which means to reread.

It is built from:

  • lire = to read
  • re- = again

So:

  • lire = to read
  • relire = to read again, reread

It is not an -er verb, so it does not follow the most common pattern.
Its imperative tu form is relis.

Compare:

  • lirelis !
  • relirerelis !

Why is it relis and not relis-le or something similar right after the verb?

Because the full noun is still there: ce paragraphe.

The sentence says:

  • Relis ce paragraphe = Reread this paragraph

Since ce paragraphe is explicitly stated, there is no need for an object pronoun after relis.

If you wanted to replace ce paragraphe with it, then in an affirmative command French would place the pronoun after the verb:

  • Relis-le. = Reread it.

But that is not what this sentence does.


Why does French use ce paragraphe here? What does ce mean?

Ce means this (or sometimes that, depending on context) before a masculine singular noun.

Here:

  • paragraphe is masculine singular
  • so ce paragraphe = this paragraph

French demonstratives change depending on gender and number:

  • ce livre = this book
  • cet article = this article
  • cette phrase = this sentence
  • ces paragraphes = these paragraphs

Because paragraphe is masculine and starts with a consonant sound, ce is the correct form.


What does encore une fois mean here?

Encore une fois means again or one more time.

Literally, it is:

  • encore = still / again
  • une fois = one time

So together:

  • encore une fois = once again, one more time

In this sentence, it tells the person to reread the paragraph one additional time before sending it.


Why is avant de used before l’envoyer?

French often uses avant de + infinitive to mean before doing something.

So:

  • avant de l’envoyer = before sending it

This structure is used when the subject is understood to be the same person. In other words, the person who must reread the paragraph is also the person who will send it.

A useful comparison:

  • Relis-le avant de l’envoyer. = Reread it before sending it.
  • Relis-le avant qu’il ne l’envoie. = Reread it before he sends it.

So avant de + infinitive is the normal choice when the subject stays the same.


What does l’ stand for in l’envoyer?

L’ is the direct object pronoun meaning it.

It replaces ce paragraphe:

  • envoyer ce paragraphe = to send this paragraph
  • l’envoyer = to send it

The e in le is dropped before a vowel, which is why you get l’envoyer instead of le envoyer.

So:

  • le / lal’ before a vowel sound
  • l’envoyer = to send it

Why is the pronoun l’ placed before envoyer, when in commands pronouns often come after the verb?

Excellent question. In French, pronoun position depends on the structure.

With an affirmative imperative, pronouns usually come after the verb:

  • Envoie-le. = Send it.

But here the pronoun belongs to the infinitive envoyer, not to the main command verb relis:

  • Relis ce paragraphe avant de l’envoyer.

The command is Relis.
Then avant de l’envoyer is a separate infinitive phrase meaning before sending it.

In French, object pronouns normally go before an infinitive:

  • pour le voir = to see it
  • sans le dire = without saying it
  • avant de l’envoyer = before sending it

So the placement is completely normal.


Why is it envoyer and not a conjugated form like envoies or envoyes?

Because after avant de, French uses the infinitive.

So:

  • envoyer = to send

Not:

  • envoies
  • envoie
  • envoyes

Those would be finite or nonstandard forms, and they do not fit after de here.

The pattern is:

  • avant de + infinitive
  • après + infinitive
  • sans + infinitive
  • pour + infinitive

Examples:

  • avant de partir = before leaving
  • sans parler = without speaking
  • pour finir = to finish / in order to finish

Is relis pronounced with the final s?

No. In normal pronunciation, the final s in relis is silent.

So relis is pronounced roughly like ruh-lee.

Also:

  • l’envoyer begins with a vowel sound
  • but there is no special pronounced s link from relis to ce

So the command sounds roughly like:

  • Relis ce paragraphe encore une fois avant de l’envoyer.

with the final s of relis not being pronounced.


Could French also say une autre fois instead of encore une fois?

Sometimes, but not with exactly the same feel.

  • encore une fois = one more time / again
  • une autre fois = another time

In this sentence, encore une fois is the natural choice because it means repeat the action now, one additional time.

If you said une autre fois, it could sound more like at another occasion or another time, depending on context.

So for reread it one more time before sending it, encore une fois is the best fit.


Is this sentence using tu or vous?

It is using tu.

The imperative forms are different:

  • Relis = tu form
  • Relisez = vous form

So:

  • Relis ce paragraphe... = speaking to one person informally
  • Relisez ce paragraphe... = speaking to one person formally or to several people

This sentence is therefore informal singular.


Could Relis ce paragraphe encore une fois avant de l’envoyer be translated literally word for word?

More or less, yes:

  • Relis = reread
  • ce paragraphe = this paragraph
  • encore une fois = one more time / again
  • avant de = before
  • l’envoyer = sending it / to send it

A very literal English version would be:

  • Reread this paragraph one more time before sending it.

That is also a natural translation, so this sentence lines up quite nicely between French and English.

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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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