The circumstancial complement in French

What is the CC in French ? 

The circumstantial complements (French: les compléments circonstanciels) are words or group of words and indicate in which circumstance the action takes place: at what time, in what place, in what way, for what purpose, for what cause, with what or by what?

It completes the verb and can be deleted or moved. 

There are many categories of circumstantial complements: 

• The circumstantial complement of time
• The circumstantial complement of place.
• The circumstantial complement of way.
• The circumstantial complement of purpose
• The circumstantial complement of consequence
• The circumstantial complement of means. 

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The circumstantial complement of time in French

The circumstantial complément of time (French: le complément circonstanciel de temps) is abbreviated CCT and makes the understanding more precise

1. situate an action at a specific moment
2. indicate the duration of an action
3. express the repetition of an action

To find the CCT, you most often ask these questions after the verb or the complement: 

• Quand ? (When ?)
• Pendant combien de temps ? (How long ?)

Examples

The circumstantial complement of place in French

The circumstantial complement of place (French; le complément circonstanciel de lieu) is abbreaviated CCL and indicates where the action happens.

To find the CCL, it is most often to ask the question after the verb and the complement. 

• Où ? (Where ?)

Examples

The circumstantial complement of way in French

The circumstantial complement of way (French: le complément circonstanciel de manière) is abbreviated CCM and indicates how the action takes place. 

To find the CCM, it is necessary that you ask these questions after the verb and the complement. 

• Comment ? (How ?)
• De quel facon ? (How ?)
• De quelle manière ? (How ?)

Examples

The circumstantial complement of purpose in French

The circumstantial complement of purpose (French: le complément circonstanciel de but) is abbreviated CCB and expresses the objective that someone intentionally wishes to achieve or, on the contrary, avoid.

To find the CC de but, is it necessary that you ask these question after the verb or the complement: 

• Pourquoi ? (Why ?)
• Dans quel but ? (For what ?)
• En vue de quoi ? (For what ?)

The CC de but is usually introduced by prepositions like: pour, en vue de, afin de, dans l’intention de and many others.  

The circumstantial complement of consequence in French 

The circumstantial complement of cause (French: le complément circonstanciel de conséquence) is abbreviated CCC and expresses the result of an action. 

 This complement is used as the result of the cause which is also a circumstancial complement that indicates what happens first. 

To find the CCC, it is necessary that you ask these questions after the verb and the complement:

• Avec quel résultat ? (What results ?)
• De manière à obtenir quel résultat ? (In order to get what ?)
• Pour quel résultat ? (For what ?)

​Examples

The circumstantial complement of means

The circumstantial complement of means (French: le complément circonstanciel de moyen) is abbreviated CC de moyen to avoid the same abbreciation as the CCM. It indicates the tool, the utensil, the part of the body, the instrument, the means of displacement used to accomplish the action.

To find the CC de moyen, it is necessary that you ask these questions after the verb and the complement:

• Par quel moyens ? (How ?)
• Avec quoi ? (With what ?)

Examples

The position of a CC in French 

To recognize a circumstantial complement, we must find a group of words that we can delete or move.

Example:

Le lundi, les étudiants vont à l'université. (On monday, students go to college)

• "le lundi" can be deleted, which is a CCT 
• It can also be moved:

Les étudiants vont à l'université le lundi

Therefore, a circumstantial complement follow the verb or a complement. There can be two circumstantial complements in the same sentence

Je vais à l'école demain. (I am going to school tomorrow)

• "à l'école" is a circumstantial complement of place (CCL)
• "demain" is a circumstantial complement of time (CCT)
• The CCT can be also deleted. 

The grammatical category of a CC

The grammatical nature of a circumstantial complement can be

• a noun
• a pronoun 
• an adverb
• an infinitive verb
• a gerund
• a proposition