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How to Say ‘He couldn't do anything’ in French

Ne pouvait rien faire

nuh poo-VEH ree-en fair

[nuh poo-VEH ree-en fair]

💬 Usage Tip: Ne ... rien wraps around the verb to mean "nothing". In casual speech the ne usually disappears: il pouvait rien faire.

Phrase Breakdown

Ne pouvait

nuh poo-VEH

could not

Say 'nuh poo-VEH'. 'Pouvait' is the imperfect of 'pouvoir' (can), and its -ait ending sounds like 'eh'.

Example

Il ne pouvait pas venir.

He couldn't come.

Words in this phrase

[nuh]

not

Used to make a negative.

Example

Je ne sais pas.

I do not know.

pouvait

[poo-VEH]

could

Imperfect tense of 'pouvoir' (to be able), third person singular.

Example

Il ne pouvait pas venir.

He couldn't come.

rien faire

ree-en fair

do anything

Say 'ryan FEHR' with a nasal 'rien'. With 'ne', 'rien' means 'nothing'.

Example

Je ne veux rien faire aujourd'hui.

I don't want to do anything today.

Words in this phrase

rien

[ree-en]

nothing

Not anything; no single thing.

Example

Il n'y a rien ici.

There is nothing here.

faire

[fair]

Infinitive of the verb meaning to do or to make.

Example

Qu'est-ce qu'on peut faire ?

What can we do?

Guides for French learners

Ordering in French: Cafés, Bakeries and Restaurants (with Menu Vocabulary)How to order in French at a café, a bakery and a restaurant: the phrases, the questions staff ask, and the menu and food vocabulary to understand the answers.Hello in French: Greetings, Good Evening and How to Answer "How Are You?"How to say hello in French, when to switch to good evening, how to ask how are you and what to answer, with tu vs vous and native audio.

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