toute seule

Question

"J’ai commencé par laver et changer les draps, ce qui n’est pas une partie de plaisir toute seule"

I don't understand "toute seule" here. It appears to be behaving as an adjective, not an adverb.

If it is an adjective, what is it supposed to be agreeing with ?

Cécile Janty-Davies · Accepted Answer

Hi Paul,
You are correct in saying that -
toute seule would be considered on its own, meaning that this activity in itself isn't particularly pleasurable.
Hope this helps!

Chris Wirt · Answer

Toute seule -- all alone, by myself, on one's own. It agrees in number and gender with the speaker (apparently a female).J’ai commencé par laver et changer les draps, ce qui n’est pas une partie de plaisir toute seule. -- I started by washing and changing the sheets, which is no fun on my own.

Paul Speed · Answer

Thanks for the reply Chris, I think that's the missing piece of the jigsaw for me - the point that it is supposed to agree with the speaker, I was thinking it should agree either with ce qui (which i would expect to be masculine) , or with Une partie de plaisir.

In that context, I also thought it meant "on it's own", rather than "on my own".

Paul.

Eugene Miroshnichenko · Answer

I think « toute seule» relates to partie, which means: is not a pleasure (fun) by itself