French Phrase
Reste avec eux jusqu'à ce que les secours arrivent.
Meaning
The sentence tells someone to stay with a group of people until the rescue team arrives. It combines an imperative command with a temporal clause that uses the subjunctive, highlighting urgency and responsibility.
When to use
Use this phrase in emergency or rescue situations—when you’re asking a friend, a by‑stander, or a volunteer to keep watch over victims until professional help shows up. It can also be used metaphorically to mean ‘stay with them until help arrives.’
✦Grammar Breakdown
Resteaveceuxjusqu'àcequelessecoursarrivent
Imperative (Reste)
‘Reste’ is the singular informal imperative of the verb *rester* (to stay). Use ‘Restez’ for formal or plural address.
Preposition + Pronoun (avec eux)
‘avec’ means ‘with’; when followed by a stressed pronoun like *eux*, it emphasizes the people you stay with.
Conjunction ‘jusqu’à ce que’
This conjunction introduces a subordinate clause that requires the subjunctive mood.
Subjunctive (arrivent)
‘arrivent’ is the present subjunctive of *arriver* (to arrive). It is used after ‘jusqu’à ce que’ to express an action that has not yet happened.
Noun phrase (les secours)
‘les secours’ refers to rescue services or help; it is always plural in French.
🗨In Conversation
Reste avec eux jusqu'à ce que les secours arrivent.
Stay with them until the rescue arrives.
D'accord, je ne les quitterai pas.
Okay, I won’t leave them.
✕Common Mistakes
Reste avec eux jusqu'à que les secours arrivent.
The correct conjunction is ‘jusqu’à ce que’; the extra ‘que’ is redundant.
Restez avec eux jusqu'à ce que les secours arrivent.
‘Restez’ is formal/plural; using it with a single friend (tu) sounds overly formal.
Reste avec eux jusqu'à ce que les secours arriver.
After ‘jusqu’à ce que’, the verb must be in the subjunctive; using the indicative ‘arrivent’ is acceptable here, but learners sometimes mistakenly use the infinitive ‘arriver’.
↔Alternatives
Reste à leurs côtés jusqu'à l'arrivée des secours.
Stay by their side until the rescue arrives.
Ne les quitte pas avant que les secours ne viennent.
Don’t leave them before the rescue comes.
Garde‑les avec toi jusqu'à ce que les secours arrivent.
Keep them with you until the rescue arrives.
Cultural Tip
In French, the informal imperative ‘Reste’ is appropriate when speaking to a single person you know well (tu). In a more formal or group context, switch to ‘Restez’. Also, French emergency services are often called ‘les secours’ or ‘les pompiers’; using the plural form shows respect for the organized response teams.