Nous entretenons la voiture.

Nous is the subject pronoun meaning we.

In this sentence, nous tells you who is doing the action: we are the ones maintaining the car.

Entretenir is the infinitive, meaning to maintain.

In a normal sentence, French usually needs a conjugated verb, not the infinitive. Since the subject is nous, the verb has to match it:

• entretenir = to maintain
• nous entretenons = we maintain

So entretenons is the correct nous form of entretenir in the present tense.

It is the present tense: nous entretenons.

In French, the present tense can often mean several things in English depending on context, such as:

• we maintain the car
• we are maintaining the car
• we do maintain the car

Without more context, the basic reading is simply present tense.

This sentence uses the verb entretenir, which follows the pattern of verbs like tenir.

Its present-tense forms are:

• j’entretiens
• tu entretiens
• il / elle entretient
• nous entretenons
• vous entretenez
• ils / elles entretiennent

So the sentence uses the nous form: entretenons.

In French, nouns usually need an article much more often than in English.

So French normally says:

• la voiture = the car

Even where English might sometimes drop the article, French often keeps it. Here, la is the normal definite article for the feminine singular noun voiture.

Yes. Voiture is a feminine noun in French, so it takes the feminine singular article la.

• le = masculine singular
• la = feminine singular
• les = plural

Because voiture is feminine, you say la voiture.

The ending -ons is the typical present-tense ending for nous with many French verbs.

So when you see entretenons, the -ons helps signal that the subject is nous.

For example:

• nous parlons
• nous finissons
• nous entretenons

It is a very useful pattern to recognize when reading French.

A careful pronunciation is approximately:

noo zahn-truh-tuh-non la vwah-tyoor

A more accurate IPA version is:

/nu.z‿ɑ̃.tʁə.tə.nɔ̃ la vwa.tyʁ/

A few key points:

• nous is pronounced noo
• there is a liaison between nous and entretenons, so the final s of nous sounds like z
• the ending -ons in entretenons sounds nasal, roughly -non without a fully pronounced final n
• voiture sounds roughly like vwah-tyoor

No. Even though entretenir looks a bit like entertain, it usually does not mean that.

In this sentence, entretenir means things like:

• to maintain
• to keep in good condition
• to service
• to look after (depending on context)

So Nous entretenons la voiture is about maintenance, not amusement.

Yes, often you could.

In everyday spoken French, on is very commonly used instead of nous to mean we:

• Nous entretenons la voiture = more standard, more formal, or more written
• On entretient la voiture = very common in conversation

Both can mean we maintain the car, but on is especially common in spoken French.

No. Entretenir is a fairly flexible verb.

It can be used for:

• objects / machines: entretenir une voiture = maintain a car
• a garden or house: entretenir un jardin
• relationships or habits: entretenir une amitié, entretenir l’espoir

So its core idea is often to keep something going or to keep something in good condition.

Yes. In Nous entretenons la voiture:

• nous = subject
• entretenons = verb
• la voiture = direct object

The direct object is the thing directly affected by the action. Here, the action of maintaining is being done to the car.

Yes, depending on context.

Entretenir une voiture can suggest:

• maintaining it regularly
• keeping it in good condition
• servicing it
• caring for it properly

So if the meaning shown to the learner is something like We maintain the car, that is a good basic translation, but service may also fit in some contexts.