Difference between usage of "Manquer de..." & "Il manque...à..."

Avery E.B2Kwiziq community member

Difference between usage of "Manquer de..." & "Il manque...à..."

Firstly - thanks to the creators of this lesson!

Secondly - I am having trouble understanding the distinction between the usage of "Manquer de..." and the impersonal "Il manque...à..."

The lesson describes how the two structures are formed (and gives translations that seem to overlap - e.g. "to lack [something]" VS. [someone/something] is missing (i.e. lacking) something), but doesn't seem to describe how exactly they are used differently from each other.

Thus, I'm wondering if someone can explain in what scenarios "Manquer de" must be used and not "Il manque...à..." (and vice versa), and describe if there are any situations in which both can be used.

(For an example of what I mean, can one say both "Il manque un bouton à ta chemise" (given in the lesson) and "Ta chemise manque d'un bouton" ? Why or why not? Etc.)

Thanks in advance!

Asked 4 years ago
CécileNative French expert teacher in KwiziqCorrect answer

Hi Avery,

The verb 'manquer' like 'plaire' have difficult constructions for learners of French.

Manquer de to be short of something/ to lack something

Je manque de temps = I am short of time

Il manque d'argent He is short of money

Nous manquons d'informations sur eux = We are lacking info on them

In the case of the impersonal

 'Il manque quelque chose à quelqu'un/quelque chose'-

Il manque une chaise à  table We are short of a chair for the table/ we are missing a chair 

Il manque une ceinture à ce pantalon = This pair of trousers doesn't have a belt ( it is missing a belt)

Not to be confused with to miss someone:

e.g. 

Il me manque I am missing him 

Elle me manque = I am missing her 

Paris me manque beaucoup I miss Paris very much 

Les enfants nous manquent = We miss the children

Jim J.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
https://www.cnrtl.fr/definition/manquer

Try this link  --  you will not be disappointed.

Alan (Jim)

Difference between usage of "Manquer de..." & "Il manque...à..."

Firstly - thanks to the creators of this lesson!

Secondly - I am having trouble understanding the distinction between the usage of "Manquer de..." and the impersonal "Il manque...à..."

The lesson describes how the two structures are formed (and gives translations that seem to overlap - e.g. "to lack [something]" VS. [someone/something] is missing (i.e. lacking) something), but doesn't seem to describe how exactly they are used differently from each other.

Thus, I'm wondering if someone can explain in what scenarios "Manquer de" must be used and not "Il manque...à..." (and vice versa), and describe if there are any situations in which both can be used.

(For an example of what I mean, can one say both "Il manque un bouton à ta chemise" (given in the lesson) and "Ta chemise manque d'un bouton" ? Why or why not? Etc.)

Thanks in advance!

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