This may be slightly of topic, but...

Brian E.C1Kwiziq Q&A regular contributor

This may be slightly of topic, but...

If I point to a tarte (little cake), which is a feminine word, and say “It’s me who made this” (not the most elegant phrase, but bear with me), should I say “C'est moi qui l'ai fait” or “C'est moi qui l'ai faite”? 


I’m trying to tease out whether the “past participle agreement with direct object when before the verb” rule applies even if the feminine object has not been *linguistically* referenced (only referenced, visually, or implicitly in some other way).

Asked 3 years ago
CécileNative French expert teacher in KwiziqCorrect answer

Hi Brian,

 If you were talking about une tarte you would agree the PP 'fait' with the object tarte which is feminine -

C'est moi qui l'ai faite 

or talking about a visit for instance - 

C'est une bonne visite que nous avons faite ensemble 

Jim, fait is 'invariable' when it is followed by an infinitive -

Elle s'est fait tondre les cheveux She had her head shaven

Hope this helps!

Jim J.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
Brian E. asked:

This may be slightly of topic, but...

If I point to a tarte (little cake), which is a feminine word, and say “It’s me who made this” (not the most elegant phrase, but bear with me), should I say “C'est moi qui l'ai fait” or “C'est moi qui l'ai faite”? 


I’m trying to tease out whether the “past participle agreement with direct object when before the verb” rule applies even if the feminine object has not been *linguistically* referenced (only referenced, visually, or implicitly in some other way).

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