French Phrase
Au final, c'était un accord de collaboration.
Meaning
The sentence means 'In the end, it was a collaboration agreement.' It is often used to wrap up a discussion about negotiations, indicating that the parties decided to work together.
When to use
Use this phrase after a series of talks, meetings, or negotiations when you want to highlight the final outcome as a joint partnership. It works well in both business and informal contexts, though 'Au final' leans toward spoken French.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Aufinal,c'étaitunaccorddecollaboration.
Au final
An idiomatic phrase meaning 'in the end' or 'ultimately', used to summarize a conclusion.
c'était
Imparfait of the verb être (to be) used for past descriptions or states.
un accord de collaboration
A noun phrase where 'accord' (agreement) is modified by the prepositional complement 'de collaboration' (of collaboration).
🗨In Conversation
Au final, c'était un accord de collaboration.
In the end, it was a collaboration agreement.
Oui, ça nous permettra de travailler ensemble sur le projet.
Yes, that will allow us to work together on the project.
✕Common Mistakes
Au final, c'est un accord de collaboration.
Use 'c'était' for past tense; 'c'est' refers to the present.
Au final, c'était un accord du collaboration.
The preposition after 'accord' is 'de', not the contracted 'du'.
Au final, c'était un accord de colaboration.
The correct spelling is 'final' with a single 'l' after 'fi'.
↔Alternatives
En fin de compte, c'était un accord de collaboration.
Ultimately, it was a collaboration agreement.
Finalement, nous avons conclu un accord de collaboration.
Finally, we concluded a collaboration agreement.
Cultural Tip
The expression 'Au final' is common in everyday conversation and gives a slightly informal tone. In formal writing or official reports, French speakers often prefer 'En fin de compte' or 'Finalement'. Also, note that 'accord de collaboration' is a neutral term; you can replace 'collaboration' with more specific nouns like 'recherche' (research) or 'développement' (development) depending on the context.