Verb drill
Sans que + subjunctive: say who did not take part
Practise sans que with a named subject and the subjunctive. Compare sans partir, sans que tu partes and a completed action with ait reçu.
- B2
- 7 answers
- Checked all at once
- Accents count
- Learn this in the B2 notebook →
In short
Sans que means without and introduces a subject plus a subjunctive verb: Elle est partie sans que je le sache — she left without my knowing it. Use it when the second action needs its own subject. The simple model already expresses absence, so write sans que je le sache.
Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learnRed watch out
Who would do the second action?
| French | Who would tell Nora? |
|---|---|
| Je pars sans prévenir Nora. | I would. |
| Je pars sans que tu préviennes Nora. | You would. |
| Je pars sans que personne prévienne Nora. | Anyone: nobody tells her. |
The infinitive prévenir normally shares the main subject in the first sentence. In the second, tu names a different person. In the third, personne means anyone after sans que, and the whole construction means nobody tells Nora. Keep the clause as sans que personne prévienne Nora, with no extra ne.
Study first: a few visible subjunctives
| Infinitive | Subject | Present subjunctive |
|---|---|---|
| être | je / tu / il, elle | sois / sois / soit |
| avoir | je / tu / il, elle | aie / aies / ait |
| savoir | je / tu / il, elle | sache / saches / sache |
| voir | je / tu / il, elle | voie / voies / voie |
Nous commencerons sans que tu sois obligé de participer.
We will start without you having to take part.
Future time still uses the subjunctive after sans que: sois, rather than seras. For an earlier completed action, use the past subjunctive: sans qu’elle ait donné son accord means without her having given her agreement. The auxiliary carries the mood; donné is the past participle.
What is missing?
In Le groupe avance sans que tu aies toutes les réponses, the group moves ahead even though you lack some answers. You may already have several. The word toutes makes a difference: the sentence describes incomplete knowledge, rather than saying you know nothing.
Elle a changé d’avis sans que je comprenne pourquoi.
She changed her mind without my understanding why.
Does sans que take the subjunctive?
Write the requested verb form only. Each hint gives the infinitive and, for the last two rows, the tense.
1 · Present and past subjunctive
- Le cours commence sans que Nora présente. (être)
- Il change de sujet sans que je le . (savoir)
- Elle passe sans que nous la . (voir)
- Le groupe avance sans que tu toutes les réponses. (avoir)
- Je partirai sans que tu obligé de venir. (être)
- Ils ont commencé sans que Léa le programme. (recevoir · subjonctif passé)
- Nous avons décidé sans qu’elle son avis. (donner · subjonctif passé)