Verb + de + infinitive
demander
The constructions
Meaning : to ask someone to do
Elle a demandé à son frère de l'accompagner.
Do not writeElle a demandé son frère à l'accompagner.
Meaning : the person is always introduced by à
J'ai demandé l'heure à un passant.
Meaning : the thing asked for is direct
Il demande le silence.
Why
Two prepositions in one sentence: demander à quelqu'un de faire. The person takes à, the action takes de, and the thing asked for takes nothing. It is the mirror image of aider, where the person is direct and the action takes à. Remember the pair: demander à quelqu'un de, aider quelqu'un à.
The trap for a Chinese speaker
請某人做某事 has no preposition, and English « ask someone to » has just one. French has two, in this order: à before the person, de before the action.
Read the full lesson : Indirect object pronouns →