Ergative Verb - in French

In French

English is not the only language with ergative verbs; indeed, they are a feature of many languages. French is another language that has them:

  • "Il tourne la tête." ("He turns his head.")
  • "Sa tête tourne." ("His head turns.")

However, note that the use of the reflexive form of the verb to express the anticausative meaning is more common.

  • "J'ouvre la porte." ("I open the door.")
  • "La porte s'ouvre." ("The door opens itself", i.e. "The door opens.")

Further, verbs analogous to English cook have even more possibilities, even allowing a causative construction to substitute for the transitive form of the verb:

  • "Je cuis les pâtes." ("I cook the pasta.")
  • "Je cuis." ("I cook", i.e. either "I cook " or e.g. "It's so hot in here, I'm practically roasting.")
  • "Je fais cuire les pâtes." (lit., "I make cook the pasta", i.e. "I make the pasta cook", i.e. "I cook the pasta.")
  • "Les pâtes cuisent." ("The pasta cooks.")

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