FAILLIR - Today’s French

faillir - to almost…

Part of Level 2 | It’s So French

FAILLIR is a very French verb. Let’s see what is means and how it works in this worksheet.

What FAILLIR means

FAILLIR is a funny verb. I’d say it’s more of an auxiliary, a helping verb as it’s almost never used on its own. It relies on another verb in the infinitive form.

• FAILLIR aller -> to almost go
• FAILLIR prendre le mauvais bus -> to almost take the wrong bus

Look at this sentence

• J’ai failli gagner aux cartes cet aprème.
  • I almost won the card game this afternoon.

Exercice - Practice

Translate the sentences from one column to another. From French to English (la version) is easier, from English to French (la thèse) a bit more challenging.

Traduisez les phrases d’une colonne à une autre. Du français en anglais (la version) est plus facile, de l’anglais au français (la thèse) un peu plus difficile.

Français

Translate from French to English

1. Elle a failli tomber.
2. On a failli te perdre.
3. Vous avez failli aller à Batz, mais le bateau n’est jamais arrivé.

English

Or translate from English to French for more challenge

1. She almost fell.
2. We almost lost you.
3. You almost went to Batz Island, but the boat never came.

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