C1
Formal nominalization and compression
At C1, French writing often becomes denser and more abstract. One common technique is nominalization: turning a verb phrase into a noun phrase to sound more formal or concise.
Main patterns
- mettre en oeuvre / mise en oeuvre
- prendre une décision / prise de décision
- faire une demande / formuler une demande
- commencer à analyser / début de l'analyse
- l'arrivée de, la création de, l'évolution de
Why it matters
Nominalization helps French reports, proposals, and essays sound compact and objective. It is especially common in formal summaries and institutional writing.
Watch out
Do not overcompress. Good C1 writing uses nominalization when it improves structure, not every time a verb could become a noun.
Try three examples
Example 1
Choose the more formal report-style sentence.
- On a commencé à mettre le plan en oeuvre.
- La mise en oeuvre du plan a commencé.
- On commence le plan en oeuvre.
- Le plan commence en oeuvre.
Show answer
La mise en oeuvre du plan a commencé.
The implementation of the plan has begun.
Example 2
A formal request can become a noun phrase: *Nous avons formulé une ___.*
Nous avons formulé une ___.
Show answer
demande
We made a request.
Example 3
Formal noun phrase for implementing a policy: *___ de la politique*
___ de la politique
Show answer
mise en oeuvre
Implementation of the policy.
Practise this lesson
Continue with the interactive exercise set and save your progress.