French Phrase
On a dû reprogrammer à cause de la tempête.
Meaning
The sentence means “We had to reschedule because of the storm.” It conveys that an unexpected weather event forced a change of plans. The use of "on" makes the statement informal and typical of spoken French.
When to use
Use this phrase after a sudden storm or any severe weather that disrupts a meeting, flight, or event, when you need to explain why the original schedule was changed.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Onadûreprogrammeràcausedelatempête
Impersonal pronoun "On"
"On" is used in everyday French to mean "we" or "people in general"; it takes third‑person singular verb forms.
Past of devoir – "a dû"
"Devoir" in the passé composé uses auxiliary "avoir"; the past participle "dû" does not agree with the subject because there is no preceding direct object.
Infinitive after devoir
When devoir is conjugated, it is followed by an infinitive verb (here "reprogrammer").
"à cause de"
A fixed prepositional phrase meaning "because of"; it is always followed by a noun.
Noun gender – "la tempête"
"Tempête" is feminine, so the article is "la".
🗨In Conversation
On a dû reprogrammer à cause de la tempête.
We had to reschedule because of the storm.
Pas de problème, on se retrouve demain à la même heure.
No problem, we'll meet tomorrow at the same time.
✕Common Mistakes
On a reprogrammer à cause de la tempête.
Missing the past participle "dû" changes the meaning; "a" alone just means "has".
On a dû reprogrammer par la tempête.
"Par" indicates cause in a more formal sense; the idiomatic expression is "à cause de".
On a dû reprogrammer à cause du tempête.
If you mistakenly use the masculine article "le", it becomes grammatically incorrect because "tempête" is feminine.
↔Alternatives
Nous avons été obligés de changer le planning à cause de la tempête.
We were forced to change the schedule because of the storm.
Il a fallu reporter la réunion à cause de la tempête.
It was necessary to postpone the meeting because of the storm.
À cause de la tempête, on a dû déplacer le rendez‑vous.
Because of the storm, we had to move the appointment.
Cultural Tip
In French conversation, "on" is preferred over "nous" for casual statements, especially when talking about shared actions. Also, remember that the past participle of "devoir" (dû) stays invariable in the passé composé unless a direct object precedes the verb, which is not the case here.