“Échapper” or “s'échapper”, which is correct in this sentence?

Question

I have a two part question: 1) My sentence is

I escape the lion.

Do I say

Je èchappe le lion

or

Je s'echapper du lion

or neither?

2) I see other verbs that are otherwise identical but one will have a s' before them. My grammar book does not explain what the purpose of the s' is. Could someone explain this to me or direct me to a resource online?

A quick search for s' before verb french on Google gives an appropriate answer for (2). — Maroon, Oct 17 '16 at 23:29
Thank you. I tried googling it but I did not think to try that phrase. It turned up many useful guides! — Lucille, Oct 17 '16 at 23:47
This question & answers about reflexive verbs might help you. — None, Oct 18 '16 at 06:37
You should never use an infinitive after a subject ! (Je s'echapper) Use "s'échapper" only when it's alone, it's what this form is about, never after a subject. — Teleporting Goat, Oct 20 '16 at 16:08

score 9 · Answer 1 · edited Apr 13 '17 at 12:56

A correct answer with "échapper" is:

J'échappe au lion.

Together with a person/object, you says "j'échappe à/au".

The form "je m'échappe du/de" is used together with a location:

Je m'échappe de la prison.

Je m'échappe du pays.

Last but not least, you can also use the verb "fuir", which is used the same way with locations or persons:

Je fuis le lion.

Je fuis la prison.

For your second question, see: https://french.stackexchange.com/a/4594/11668

“Échapper” or “s'échapper”, which is correct in this sentence?

1 Answers1