Complex structures

passive voice

be + past participle

used to

+be +ing/nom : habitude actuelle

+BV : habitude passé

reported speech

décaler le temps de 1

instead of

+ing

it consists in

+ing

to look froward to

+ing

to feel like

+ing

to prevent from

+ing

to be keen on

+ing

can’t bear/stand

+ing (ne pas supporter)

can’t help

+ing (ne pas pouvoir s’empecher de)

to be accustomed to

+ing (etre habitué)

had better

+BV

rather than

rather BV than BV

it is no use/useless

+ing (ca ne sert a rien de / vc’est inutile)

it is worth

+ing

i don’t mind

+ing ( ca ne me dérange pas )

no matter how

+adj

Advanced comparaison

The more you practise, the better you get

Nominalisation

turning verbs into nouns : his refusal to cooperate delayed the process

It’s time

+preterit (il est temps que)

to be prone to

+ing (avoir tendance à)

I do

+BV (insister)

depend on

+nom

in spite of

+ing/nom

without

+ing

pop in (and say hello)

passer dire bonjour rapidement

not only… but also

non seulement… mais aussi

It is high time

+preterit (il est grand temps que)

bar

bar (someone) from (doing something) → interdire/empêcher qqn de faire qqch