Why use “finir par” instead of “finir de” before an infinitive?
While inspecting some song lyrics, I noticed this sentence:
J'ai fini par te pardonner.
(Je te pardonne chanté par Maître Gims)
I'm confused to see the preposition par before an infinitive, because all I've seen in the past is à and de.
If I were to write that sentence, I would have written it as:
J'ai fini de te pardonner.
with the meaning "I have finally forgiven you".
I feel strongly that par is in fact correct, but I have no idea why it's right and why de is wrong. Also what is the usage of par here?
usage prépositions
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
asked 3 hours ago
iBug aux erreursiBug aux erreurs
2177
add a comment |
While inspecting some song lyrics, I noticed this sentence:
J'ai fini par te pardonner.
(Je te pardonne chanté par Maître Gims)
I'm confused to see the preposition par before an infinitive, because all I've seen in the past is à and de.
If I were to write that sentence, I would have written it as:
J'ai fini de te pardonner.
with the meaning "I have finally forgiven you".
I feel strongly that par is in fact correct, but I have no idea why it's right and why de is wrong. Also what is the usage of par here?
usage prépositions
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
asked 3 hours ago
iBug aux erreursiBug aux erreurs
2177
Both are correct. Finir par means to end up doing smth. So the first sentence means "I ended up forgiving you" or "After some time I finally forgave you"
– Teleporting Goat
2 hours ago
about me de iBug aux erreurs: Je suis seulement un étudiant du français et je fais souvent des erreurs.
– LPH
1 hour ago
Even better: je suis étudiant EN français. And even better than better: j'étudie le français
– Greg
1 hour ago
add a comment |
While inspecting some song lyrics, I noticed this sentence:
J'ai fini par te pardonner.
(Je te pardonne chanté par Maître Gims)
I'm confused to see the preposition par before an infinitive, because all I've seen in the past is à and de.
If I were to write that sentence, I would have written it as:
J'ai fini de te pardonner.
with the meaning "I have finally forgiven you".
I feel strongly that par is in fact correct, but I have no idea why it's right and why de is wrong. Also what is the usage of par here?
usage prépositions
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
asked 3 hours ago
iBug aux erreursiBug aux erreurs
2177
While inspecting some song lyrics, I noticed this sentence:
J'ai fini par te pardonner.
(Je te pardonne chanté par Maître Gims)
I'm confused to see the preposition par before an infinitive, because all I've seen in the past is à and de.
If I were to write that sentence, I would have written it as:
J'ai fini de te pardonner.
with the meaning "I have finally forgiven you".
I feel strongly that par is in fact correct, but I have no idea why it's right and why de is wrong. Also what is the usage of par here?
usage prépositions
usage prépositions
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
asked 3 hours ago
iBug aux erreursiBug aux erreurs
2177
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
asked 3 hours ago
iBug aux erreursiBug aux erreurs
2177
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
9,880425
asked 3 hours ago
iBug aux erreursiBug aux erreurs
2177
asked 3 hours ago
iBug aux erreursiBug aux erreurs
2177
asked 3 hours ago
iBug aux erreursiBug aux erreurs
2177
2177
Both are correct. Finir par means to end up doing smth. So the first sentence means "I ended up forgiving you" or "After some time I finally forgave you"
– Teleporting Goat
2 hours ago
about me de iBug aux erreurs: Je suis seulement un étudiant du français et je fais souvent des erreurs.
– LPH
1 hour ago
Even better: je suis étudiant EN français. And even better than better: j'étudie le français
– Greg
1 hour ago
add a comment |
Both are correct. Finir par means to end up doing smth. So the first sentence means "I ended up forgiving you" or "After some time I finally forgave you"
– Teleporting Goat
2 hours ago
about me de iBug aux erreurs: Je suis seulement un étudiant du français et je fais souvent des erreurs.
– LPH
1 hour ago
Even better: je suis étudiant EN français. And even better than better: j'étudie le français
– Greg
1 hour ago
Both are correct. Finir par means to end up doing smth. So the first sentence means "I ended up forgiving you" or "After some time I finally forgave you"
– Teleporting Goat
2 hours ago
Both are correct. Finir par means to end up doing smth. So the first sentence means "I ended up forgiving you" or "After some time I finally forgave you"
– Teleporting Goat
2 hours ago
about me de iBug aux erreurs: Je suis seulement un étudiant du français et je fais souvent des erreurs.
– LPH
1 hour ago
about me de iBug aux erreurs: Je suis seulement un étudiant du français et je fais souvent des erreurs.
– LPH
1 hour ago
Even better: je suis étudiant EN français. And even better than better: j'étudie le français
– Greg
1 hour ago
Even better: je suis étudiant EN français. And even better than better: j'étudie le français
– Greg
1 hour ago
add a comment |
1 Answer
1
active
oldest
votes
The meanings are different:
Finir par means this is the last action you will take in a process of multiple actions you had to follow, or from multiple options that you had to choose from.
J'ai fini par te pardonner means "after coping with other feelings, in the end, I have forgiven you".
You could extend the explanation that way:
Au début, j'étais tellement fâché que je ne voulais plus te parler, mais j'ai fini par te pardonner.
Finir de means the action has been fully completed.
J'ai fini de te pardonner sounds a bit weird as pardonner is usually not something that you decide to start and that should take you a while to complete, so as to mean "I started forgiving you some time ago, and now I have finished this action and you are forgiven".
Another example with another verb:
J'ai fini de réparer ma voiture.
means you have completed the action of repairing your car
J'ai fini par réparer ma voiture.
means you had the option to have it repaired in a garage, or even to not repair it at all, but in the end you decided to repair it yourself.
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
answered 2 hours ago
GregGreg
7,3221024
add a comment |
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1 Answer
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active
oldest
votes
1 Answer
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active
oldest
votes
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oldest
votes
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oldest
votes
The meanings are different:
Finir par means this is the last action you will take in a process of multiple actions you had to follow, or from multiple options that you had to choose from.
J'ai fini par te pardonner means "after coping with other feelings, in the end, I have forgiven you".
You could extend the explanation that way:
Au début, j'étais tellement fâché que je ne voulais plus te parler, mais j'ai fini par te pardonner.
Finir de means the action has been fully completed.
J'ai fini de te pardonner sounds a bit weird as pardonner is usually not something that you decide to start and that should take you a while to complete, so as to mean "I started forgiving you some time ago, and now I have finished this action and you are forgiven".
Another example with another verb:
J'ai fini de réparer ma voiture.
means you have completed the action of repairing your car
J'ai fini par réparer ma voiture.
means you had the option to have it repaired in a garage, or even to not repair it at all, but in the end you decided to repair it yourself.
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
answered 2 hours ago
GregGreg
7,3221024
add a comment |
The meanings are different:
Finir par means this is the last action you will take in a process of multiple actions you had to follow, or from multiple options that you had to choose from.
J'ai fini par te pardonner means "after coping with other feelings, in the end, I have forgiven you".
You could extend the explanation that way:
Au début, j'étais tellement fâché que je ne voulais plus te parler, mais j'ai fini par te pardonner.
Finir de means the action has been fully completed.
J'ai fini de te pardonner sounds a bit weird as pardonner is usually not something that you decide to start and that should take you a while to complete, so as to mean "I started forgiving you some time ago, and now I have finished this action and you are forgiven".
Another example with another verb:
J'ai fini de réparer ma voiture.
means you have completed the action of repairing your car
J'ai fini par réparer ma voiture.
means you had the option to have it repaired in a garage, or even to not repair it at all, but in the end you decided to repair it yourself.
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
answered 2 hours ago
GregGreg
7,3221024
add a comment |
The meanings are different:
Finir par means this is the last action you will take in a process of multiple actions you had to follow, or from multiple options that you had to choose from.
J'ai fini par te pardonner means "after coping with other feelings, in the end, I have forgiven you".
You could extend the explanation that way:
Au début, j'étais tellement fâché que je ne voulais plus te parler, mais j'ai fini par te pardonner.
Finir de means the action has been fully completed.
J'ai fini de te pardonner sounds a bit weird as pardonner is usually not something that you decide to start and that should take you a while to complete, so as to mean "I started forgiving you some time ago, and now I have finished this action and you are forgiven".
Another example with another verb:
J'ai fini de réparer ma voiture.
means you have completed the action of repairing your car
J'ai fini par réparer ma voiture.
means you had the option to have it repaired in a garage, or even to not repair it at all, but in the end you decided to repair it yourself.
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
answered 2 hours ago
GregGreg
7,3221024
The meanings are different:
Finir par means this is the last action you will take in a process of multiple actions you had to follow, or from multiple options that you had to choose from.
J'ai fini par te pardonner means "after coping with other feelings, in the end, I have forgiven you".
You could extend the explanation that way:
Au début, j'étais tellement fâché que je ne voulais plus te parler, mais j'ai fini par te pardonner.
Finir de means the action has been fully completed.
J'ai fini de te pardonner sounds a bit weird as pardonner is usually not something that you decide to start and that should take you a while to complete, so as to mean "I started forgiving you some time ago, and now I have finished this action and you are forgiven".
Another example with another verb:
J'ai fini de réparer ma voiture.
means you have completed the action of repairing your car
J'ai fini par réparer ma voiture.
means you had the option to have it repaired in a garage, or even to not repair it at all, but in the end you decided to repair it yourself.
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
answered 2 hours ago
GregGreg
7,3221024
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
edited 2 hours ago
LPH
9,880425
9,880425
answered 2 hours ago
GregGreg
7,3221024
answered 2 hours ago
GregGreg
7,3221024
answered 2 hours ago
GregGreg
7,3221024
7,3221024
add a comment |
add a comment |
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Both are correct. Finir par means to end up doing smth. So the first sentence means "I ended up forgiving you" or "After some time I finally forgave you"
– Teleporting Goat
2 hours ago
about me de iBug aux erreurs: Je suis seulement un étudiant du français et je fais souvent des erreurs.
– LPH
1 hour ago
Even better: je suis étudiant EN français. And even better than better: j'étudie le français
– Greg
1 hour ago