Nous avons assez de temps.

Questions & Answers about Nous avons assez de temps.

Why is it de temps and not des temps?

Because assez de is a quantity expression, and in French quantity expressions are normally followed by de + noun, not an article.

So:

You would not normally say assez des temps here.

What does assez mean in this sentence?

Here, assez means enough.

So assez de temps means enough time.

Be careful: assez can sometimes feel like quite or rather in other contexts, but in assez de + noun, it clearly means enough:

  • assez de patience = enough patience
  • assez d'argent = enough money
Why is the sentence Nous avons instead of just On a?

Both are possible.

  • Nous avons assez de temps. = more standard or formal
  • On a assez de temps. = very common in everyday spoken French

In modern spoken French, native speakers often use on instead of nous for we. But nous avons is completely correct and very common in writing and careful speech.

How do you pronounce Nous avons assez de temps?

A careful pronunciation is roughly:

Noo zah-von zah-say duh ton

A few points:

  • nous sounds like noo
  • avons sounds like ah-von
  • assez sounds like ah-say
  • de is often a light duh
  • temps is pronounced like ton with a nasal vowel; the final ps is silent

There are also liaisons here:

  • nous avons → the s in nous links to the next vowel: noo-zavon
  • often also avons assez → ah-von-zah-say
Why is temps singular?

Because time is being used here as an uncountable noun, just like in English.

French often uses singular nouns after quantity expressions when the noun is uncountable:

  • beaucoup d'eau = a lot of water
  • assez de travail = enough work
  • trop de temps = too much time
Can I also say Nous avons le temps?

Yes, but it does not mean exactly the same thing.

  • Nous avons assez de temps = We have enough time.
  • Nous avons le temps = We have time / We’ve got time.

Le temps often means there is time available in a more general sense.
Assez de temps stresses that the amount of time is sufficient.

Why is there no article before temps?

Because after assez de, French uses de directly before the noun.

Compare:

  • Nous avons du temps. = We have some time.
  • Nous avons assez de temps. = We have enough time.

So the quantity expression assez de replaces what would otherwise be an article.

Is de ever shortened to d' with assez?

Yes. If the following noun begins with a vowel sound, de becomes d'.

For example:

  • assez d'argent = enough money
  • assez d'eau = enough water

But with temps, there is no contraction because temps begins with a consonant sound:

  • assez de temps
What tense is avons?

Avons is the present tense of avoir for nous:

  • j'ai
  • tu as
  • il/elle a
  • nous avons
  • vous avez
  • ils/elles ont

So Nous avons assez de temps is in the present tense: We have enough time.

Could I say Nous avons suffisamment de temps instead?

Yes. Suffisamment de temps also means enough time.

  • Nous avons assez de temps.
  • Nous avons suffisamment de temps.

The second version can sound a little more formal or explicit, but both are natural and correct.

What is the negative version of this sentence?

The most natural negative is:

  • Nous n'avons pas assez de temps. = We do not have enough time.

Notice that:

So:

  • affirmative: Nous avons assez de temps.
  • negative: Nous n'avons pas assez de temps.
Can the word order change?

Normally, this is the standard word order:

French does not usually rearrange this the way English sometimes can.
You could change it for emphasis in special contexts, but for normal use, keep this order:

subject + verb + quantity expression + noun

So this sentence is a very typical and natural structure.

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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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