Multichannel Effects within PEMFCs

1. There must be no agreement in between the subject and the past participle if the auxiliary avoir is used in a direct and simple sentence: Example:

- J’ai mangé de la viande.

2. But in a situation where the compliment of the direct object comes before the verb that has avoiras its auxiliary verb in the ‘passé composé’, the past participle of this main verb must agree in gender and in number with the object. The feminine object therefore introduces an additional e to the ending of the past participle while the plurality is marked by an additional s (if it is masculine plural) or additional es (if it is feminine plural): Examples!

3. -- La viandeque j’ai mangée.

-- Les livresque vous m’avez donnés.

--j’aivu des filles. = Je les ai vues.

4. When an auxiliary ‘être’is used, the past participle must agree in gender and in number with the subject. The feminine subject introduces an additional e to the ending of the past participle while the plurality is marked by an additional s (if it is masculine plural) or additional es (if it is feminine plural):

-- Il est parti. = Elle est partie.

-- Elles sont sorties. = Ils sont sortis.

-- Nous sommes sorti(e)s.

5. Pronominal or reflexive verbs will agree in gender and in number if the reflexive pronoun used with the verb has its antecedent in the (main) subject thus referring to the subject also:

---Yetunde s’est lavée.

-- Nous nous sommes lavés./ Nous nous sommes lavées.

6. But there will be no agreement if the action is not referring to the subject but to a direct object placed after the past participle of the sentence:

---Elle s’est lavé la main.

-- Elles se sont lavé les vêtements.

7. In a situation where the compliment of direct object ‘en’ comes before the auxiliary avoir there will be no accord:

--Les hommes célèbres, j’en ai connu.

8. The past participle of the verb faire (fait) followed by an infinitive does not agree in gender and in number with the subject, nor with the object:

-- Je les ai fait comprendre

-- Combien de Kilomètres avez-vous couru avant de le rattraper?

-- Combien de commissions avez-vous courues pour le Président?

--- Ce sont les dix Naira que ce travail a valu.

---Vous pensez que ma vie n’a value que celle de chien?

SELF ASSESSMENT EXERCISE

Rewrite the following sentences by conjugating the verbs in the them into

‘passé composé’ by laying emphasis on the agreement (accord) where necessary.

1. les branches (rayer) ma voiture. – 2. ils (bondir) de joie lorsqu’ils (savoir) leur note. – 3. j’(commencer) à réaliser un herbier. – 4. mes grands-parents (aller) en Iran ; ils m’(rapporter) un vase craquelé. – 5.

l’équipe de France (triompher) endemi-finale.

Possible answer :

1 les branches ont rayé ma voiture.– 2. ils ont bondi de joie lorsqu’ils ont su leur note. – 3. j’ai commencé à réaliser un herbier. – 4. mes grands-parents sont allés en Iran ; ils m’ont rapporté un vase craquelé. – 5.

L’équipe de France a triomphé en demi-finale.

4.0 CONCLUSION

You have been taught, in this unit, the rules governing the agreement of passé composé. You have also been told of how to recognize the sentences that need the grammatical agreement of passé composé. We believe by now you can accord the agreement rules of passé composé.

5.0 SUMMARY

Having taught you the conjugations of verbs through the simplified presentation of conjugation of présent de l’indicatif in Units two to five and the techniques of conjugation of future simple in Unit six to eight as well as the method of conjugation verbs with auxiliaries avoir and être into passé compose that we taught in Units nine to eleven, this Unit twelve has gone further in the conjugation techniques by tackling the agreement of passé composé. We believe by now that you can accord the agreement when you stumble on them in French language structure.

6.0 TUTOR MARKED ASSIGNMENTS

Accord the passé composé to these sentences where necessary:

a. Fatima a mangé de la viande.

b. Voilà la viande que Fatima a mangé.

c. Funsho et Yetunde se sont lavé.

d. Ils se sont lavé les vêtements.

e. Les femmes célèbres,j’en ai connu.

f. Olu les a fait comprendre.

i. Combien de Kilomètres as-tu couru avant de le rattraper?

j. Combien de commissions as-tu couru pour le Président?

7.0 REFERENCES AND OTHER RESOURCES

Ade Ojo, Samuel (2002): A comprehensive Revison Handbook of French Grammar. Ibadan: Signal Educational Services Ltd.

Adeleke, Joseph (2014): A Short French Grammar, 2^ndedition, Gad Press and Ventures Ltd, Lagos, 2010.

Akeusola, Olu (1995): French grammar for Anglophone Students, Tobak Publishers, Lagos.

Akeusola, Olu (2004): Basic French Grammar for beginners, Tobak Publishers, Lagos.

Bescherelle (1990) : La Conjugaison 12,000 Verbes, Paris, Hâtier.

Beschrelle (1992) : Junior : Grammaire, Orthographe grammatical d’Usage, Conjugaison, Vocabulaire. Paris: Hâtier, 1992.

Eruanga, Oluremi (2018): A New Approach to Contemporary French.

Lagos: Ocean Gate Books Consult.

Glaud, Ludivine ; Lannier, Muriel & Loiseau, Yves (2015) : Grammaire essentielle du français A1-A2. Paris: Editions Didier.

Lee, Wendy et al. (2004): Collins Easy Learning French Grammar.

Glasglow: Harper Collins.