atteindre at C1 — refined & idiomatic
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Targets, peaks and points of no return.
Reaching and wounding
« Atteindre son but » is the clean one: the goal was reached, whatever it cost. Above it sits « atteindre son paroxysme », the peak of an emotion or a crisis — « la tension a atteint son paroxysme ». Newspapers reach for it when violence, heat or anger tops out. Keep « paroxysme » for what rises and breaks, « but » for what you aimed at.
« Atteindre le point de non-retour » is the dramatic register: negotiations, a marriage, a climate curve arriving where nothing can be undone. You reach that point; going past it is « dépasser le point de non-retour ». And with a person as object, « atteindre » wounds: « cette remarque l’a atteint dans son amour-propre », it hurt his pride — emotional, where bullets and police reports keep the physical sense.
💡 Focus at this level: Idiomatic — atteindre son paroxysme, le point de non-retour, atteindre dans son amour-propre
👨🏫 How to use « atteindre » at this level
1. « Atteindre son paroxysme » = to reach its peak. Tension, violence, heat.
2. « Atteindre le point de non-retour » = to reach the point of no return. Going further is « dépasser ».
3. « Atteindre dans son amour-propre » = to wound someone’s pride. Emotional.
🔊 Example sentences
✍️ Practice
Which is dramatic: « atteindre son but » or « atteindre son paroxysme » ?
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« Atteindre son paroxysme » — it is a crisis at its peak; « atteindre son but » is simply the goal reached.
Complete: « Les pourparlers ont atteint le point de … »
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« … non-retour ». Once that point is reached, nobody can go back to the earlier situation.
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🧩 Sentence builder put the words in the right order