What FAILLIR means

FAILLIR is a funny verb. I’d say it’s more of an auxiliary, a helping verb as it’s almost never used on its own. It relies on another verb in the infinitive form.

• FAILLIR aller –> to almost go
• FAILLIR prendre le mauvais bus –> to almost take the wrong bus

Look at this sentence

• J’ai failli gagner aux cartes cet aprème.
  • I almost won the card game this afternoon.

Exercice – Practice

Translate the sentences from one column to another. From French to English (la version) is easier, from English to French (la thèse) a bit more challenging.

Traduisez les phrases d’une colonne à une autre. Du français en anglais (la version) est plus facile, de l’anglais au français (la thèse) un peu plus difficile.