Declarative Sentences – Free Exercise

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Exercises

Choose the correct option for each field in order to construct a complete sentence that makes sense.

subjectpredicatedirect objectindirect object
[Constance gives her sister a CD.]
[Hervé explains his problem to Julie.]
[The children surprise their parents.]

Construct sentences, paying attention to word order.

  1. les pommes/je préfère/aux poires
    →   [I prefer apples to pears.]|The direct object comes before the indirect object.
  2. à sa cousine/écrit/Julie/une lettre
    →   [Julie writes a letter to her cousin.]|The direct object comes before the indirect object.
  3. raconte/à sa sœur/une histoire/Pascal
    →   [Pascal tells his sister a story.]|The direct object comes before the indirect object.
  4. beaucoup de livres/prête/à ses lecteurs/la bibliothèque
    →   [The library lends many books to its patrons.]|The direct object comes before the indirect object.
  5. cache/l’immeuble jaune/à notre maison/le soleil
    →   [The yellow building blocks the sunlight from our house.]|The direct object comes before the indirect object.

Complete the sentences, paying attention to word order.

  1. Les grands-parents font souvent (aux petits-enfants/des cadeaux)  [Grandparents often give their grandchildren gifts.]|This sentence follows the general rule: the direct object comes before the indirect object.
  2. Julie a présenté (un exposé sur son animal préféré/à sa classe)  [Julie gave a presentation to her class about her favourite animal.]|In order to make the sentence clearer, French word order places the extended direct object after the indirect object.
  3. Eric et Julie montrent (le jeu qu’ils ont appris en vacances/aux voisins)   [Eric and Julie are showing their neighbours the game that they learned on holiday.]|The direct object is extended with a relative clause, and therefore is placed after the indirect object.
  4. Amandine a donné (à Georges/une claque qui lui a fait mal)  [Amandine gave Georges a slap that hurt him.]|The direct object is extended with a relative clause, and therefore is placed after the indirect object.
  5. Internet offre (au journalisme/de nouveaux moyens)  [The internet offers new possibilities for journalism.]|The direct object comes before the indirect object.