Why "Comment appelle-te cet arbre" instead of Comment appelle-t-on cet arbre" for What do we call this tree?
What do we call this tree?
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Paul F.Kwiziq community member
What do we call this tree?
This question relates to:French lesson "Inverted questions in the present tense (Le Présent) in French - il/elle/on forms"
Asked 7 months ago
Bonjour Paul,
"Comment appelle-te cet arbre ?" to express "What do we call this tree?" is not correct in French.
"te" is a reflexive pronoun which cannot be placed there in a question.
Comment t'appelles-tu ? = What is your name?
Comment s'appelle cet arbre ? = What is this tree called?
Comment appelle-t-on cet arbre ? = What do we call this tree?
-> the "-t-" is used here to make the sentence easier to pronounce.
See the lesson link below:
How to form inverted questions with reflexive verbs in French
I hope this is helpful.
Bonne journée !
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