Participe passé de "faire" + infinitif : invariable

In French, the past participle usually agrees with the direct object if that object comes first. For example, with manger, you might write mangée. But faire is a rebel. When you follow fait with an infinitive, they become a team. They fuse together to form a single idea. Linguists call this a verbal unit. Because they are so tightly linked, the object no longer "belongs" to fait. Instead, the object belongs to the second verb. Since fait has no object of its own in this structure, it has nothing to agree with. It remains neutral. It stays in its basic masculine singular form. Yes, even native speakers mess this up sometimes! They see a feminine object and want to add an e. Don't fall into that trap. Your brain will scream at you to add an extra letter. You must resist. If you see an infinitive right after fait, keep it simple. It is the ultimate "set it and forget it" rule of French. It makes your life easier and your French more accurate.

1. 1Creating this structure is like building with Lego blocks. You only need four pieces.
2. 2Start with your subject (like je, tu, or ma mère).
3. 3Use the present tense of avoir (the helper verb).
4. 4Add the past participle fait (always this spelling!).
5. 5Finish with an infinitive verb (the action being done).
6. 6If you want to use a pronoun like les or la, put it before avoir. Even then, do not change fait. For example: Je les ai fait réparer. See how les is plural? Notice how fait didn't change? That is the magic of the rule. You are building a sentence that says "I had them repaired." It works for any verb you can imagine. You can use nettoyer (to clean), construire (to build), or imprimer (to print). The structure stays rigid. It is a solid foundation for your sentences. It helps you sound like you know exactly what you are doing.

Use this pattern whenever you are the boss. You aren't doing the manual labor. You are the manager. Think about a trip to the hair salon. You didn't cut your own hair. You had it cut. In French, you say Je me suis fait couper les cheveux. Even in the reflexive form, the rule holds. Use it when you hire a mechanic for your car. J'ai fait réparer ma voiture. Use it at a restaurant if you ask for a special dish. J'ai fait cuire la viande à point. It is perfect for professional settings too. In a job interview, you might say you had a project validated. J'ai fait valider le projet. It shows you can delegate. It shows you know how to get things done. Use it for anything that involves a service. If you are ordering a custom suit, use fait faire. If you are getting your house painted, use fait peindre. It covers all those moments where you are the architect of the action, not the actor.

There is one big catch. You must see an infinitive. If faire is standing alone, the rule changes. In a sentence like La tarte que j'ai faite, there is no infinitive. Here, the regular agreement rules apply. You must add the e because tarte is feminine and comes before the verb. This is where most people get confused. They forget that the "invariable rule" only lives where the infinitive lives. Think of the infinitive as a shield. It protects fait from the agreement rules. If the shield is gone, fait is vulnerable. It must agree with the preceding direct object. So, always check the very next word. Is it a verb in the -er, -ir, or -re form? If yes, keep fait as it is. If the next word is a noun or if the sentence ends, you might need to agree. It is a simple binary choice. No infinitive? Agree. Infinitive? Don't agree.

The number one mistake is the "Over-Achiever Error." This happens when you are so good at agreement that you do it everywhere. You see les photos and you write faites. It looks right, but it is wrong. Les photos que j'ai fait imprimer is the correct way. Another mistake is forgetting the avoir auxiliary. Some learners try to use être because it feels like a passive action. Remember, causative faire always uses avoir (unless it is reflexive). Don't let the meaning confuse the grammar. Even if the sentence feels like "The car was repaired by me," the French structure is active. Another slip-up is word order. Always keep fait and the infinitive together. They are best friends. Don't put adverbs or other words between them. If you say J'ai fait souvent réparer, it sounds clunky. Keep them side by side. Finally, watch out for the reflexive se faire. Even then, if an infinitive follows, fait stays the same. Elle s'est fait mal vs Elle s'est fait opérer. Both use fait. It is consistent, which is rare for French!

This rule is unique to faire. Other verbs that look similar aren't as strict. Take the verb laisser (to let). With laisser, you actually have a choice. You can say Je les ai laissés partir or Je les ai laissé partir. Both are technically okay now. Verbs of perception like voir (to see) or entendre (to hear) are even more complex. They agree if the object is the one doing the action. For example: Je les ai vues courir (I saw the girls running). Here, the girls are doing the running, so we agree. But faire doesn't care about any of that logic. It doesn't matter who is doing what. It stays fait. It is the "easy button" of the French verbal world. While you have to think and analyze with voir or écouter, you can relax with faire. It is the exception that actually makes your life simpler instead of harder.