< French For Football < Grammar
À and De
The preposition à can indicate a destination, a location, a characteristic, measurement, a point in time, purpose, and several other things which will be covered later.
When le follows à, the à and le combine into au. Similarly, à and les combine into aux.
The preposition de can indicate an origin, contents, possession, cause, manner, and several other things which will be covered later.
When le follows de, the de and le combine into du. Similarly, de and les combine into des.
Geography Prepositions
Cities
- à is used to say in, at, to
- Je vais à Paris. - I'm going to Paris
- de is used to say from.
- Je reviens de Paris. - I return from Paris.
- cities that have articles as part of their names contract with the preposition if the city is masculine.
- le Caire - Je vais au Caire. - Je reviens du Caire.
- le Havre - Je vais au Havre. - Je reviens du Havre.
- la Nouvelle-Orléans - Je vais à la Nouvelle-Orléans. - Je reviens de la Nouvelle-Orléans.
Feminine Regions, Countries, and Continents
- Most geographical areas are feminine
- Every French geographical area that ends in -e is feminine, with one or two exceptions.
- Every continent is feminine.
- en is used to say in, at, to for all feminine geographical areas except cities
- Je vais en France. - I go to France.
- de is used to say from for all feminine geographical areas except cities
- Je reviens de France. - I return from France.
- de is contracted to d' when followed by a vowel.
- Je vais en Espagne. - Je reviens d' Espagne
Masculine Regions
- all regions that do not end in a slient e are mascuiline
Audio : French native speaker
- dans le is used to say in, at, to for most masculine regions, provinces, and states
- Je vais dans le Limousin. - I'm going to Limousin.
- du, a contraction of de + le, is used to say from for most regions, provinces, and states
- Je reviens du Limousin. - I return from Limousin.
- If a region is thought of or considered as its own sovereign state, au is used instead of dans le
- Je vais au Québec. - Je reviens du Québec. (Note: This is for the province of Québec. For the city of Québec, Je vais à Québec should be used. - Je reviens de Québec.)
- Je vais au Texas. - Je reviens du Texas.
Masculine Countries Starting With a Consonant
- all countries that do not end in a silent e are masculine
- le Cambodge, le Mexique, le Zimbabwe, and le Mozambique are masculine
- au is used to say in, at, to for masculine countries beginning with a consonant
- Je vais au Portugal. - I'm going to Portugal.
- du is used to say from for masculine countries beginning with a consonant
- Je reviens du Portugal. - I return from Portugal.
Plural Countries
Audio : French native speaker
- aux, a contraction of à + les, is used to say in, to, as if a plural article is part of the name of a country
- Je vais aux États-Unis. - I'm going to the United States. (pronounced aytahzoohnee)
- des, a contraction of de + les, is used to say from if a plural article is part of the name of a country
- Je reviens des États-Unis. - I return from the United States.
Masculine Countries Starting With a Vowel
- en is used to say in, at, to for all masculine countries beginning with a vowel
- Je vais en Israël. - I'm going to Israel.
- d' is used to say from for all masculine countries beginning with a vowel
- Je reviens d' Israël. - I return from Israel.
Check For Understanding
- Are all French countries ending in e feminine?
- What geographical areas use the preposition dans le?
- What prepositions do countries beginning with vowels use?
- What prepositions does the city of Quebec use? ...the province of Quebec?
Common prepositions
| Prepostion | Translation | Example | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| à | 1. to 2. at 3. of 4. in | Je vais au match. -- I am going to the match. Je pars à cinq heures. -- I am leaving at five C'est un ami à moi. -- This is a friend of mine. C'est la voiture à John. -- This is John's car. | |
| à côté de | next to, besides | Le tir passe à côté du but. -- The shot passes wide of the goal. | (du = de le) |
| à l'intérieur de | inside | La balle doit rester à l'intérieur de l'aire de jeu. -- The ball must stay inside the playing area. | Alternative: dedans (rarely used as a preposition) |
| afin de | in order to | Le match est arrêté afin d'avertir ou d'expulser un joueur. -- The match is stopped in order to caution or dismiss a player. | |
| afin que | so that | Il est prêté à Lorient afin qu'il puisse enchaîner les matchs en Ligue 1. -- He was loaned to Lorient so that he could continue playing in Ligue 1. | |
| après | after | cinq minutes après le repos—five minutes after the break | Also an adverb. |
| avant | before, in front | avant le début du match—before the start of the match | |
| avec | with | Il va rester avec l'équipe. -- He is going to stay with the team. | |
| chez | at the home of | Ils sont toujours invaincus chez eux. -- They are still unbeaten at home. | |
| contre | against | un but contre son camp—an own goal | |
| dans | in | une poussette dans le dos—a small push in the back | Synonym: en |
| de | 1. of, from 2. about | la méforme de son meilleur joueur—the unfitness of his best player | Also an indefinite artcle. Contractions: du, des IPA: /də/ |
| depuis | since | invaincu depuis le début de la saison—unbeaten since the start of the season | |
| derrière | behind | un meneur de jeu posté derrière deux attaquants—a playmaker posted behind two forwards | |
| dès | from | dès que possible—as soon as possible | |
| devant | in front of | un cafouillage devant le but—a scramble in front of the goal | |
| en | in | un match en moins—a match in hand | Also a pronoun. |
| entre | between | une mésentente entre le gardien et son défenseur—a misunderstanding between the goalkeeper and his defender | |
| hors | outside, out of | hors de position—out of position | |
| jusqu'à | until | Il restera jusqu'à la fin de la saison. -- He will stay until the end of the season. | |
| loin de | far from | Le match est loin d'être fini. -- The match is far from over. | |
| malgré | despite | l'équipe reste zen malgré tout—the team remains calm in spite of everything | |
| par | 1. through 2. by, for | un ballon cafouillé par la défense—a ball bungled by the defence | |
| parmi | among | il est parmi les dix candidats—he is among the ten contenders | |
| à partir de | from | écoutez l'émission ce soir à partir de 20h—hear the broadcast this evening starting at 8 p.m. | |
| pendant | during | les commentaires pendant le match—the commentary during the match | |
| près de | near | on est tout près de l'égalisation—we are so close to the equaliser | |
| pour | for | il est titularisé pour la première fois—he is picked for the first time | |
| sans | without | il capte le ballon sans difficulté—he catches the ball without difficulty | |
| sauf | except | tout le monde l'a vu sauf l'arbitre—everyone saw it except the referee | |
| selon | according to | selon le quotidien britannique, le Daily Mail—according to the British daily paper, The Daily Mail | |
| sous | under | sous l’impulsion de leur capitaine—spurred on by their captain | |
| sur | 1. on 2. upon 3. on top of 4. above 5. out of 6. sept sur dix (seven out of ten) | sur le papier, c'est la meilleure équipe—on paper, it's the better team | Synonyms: au-dessus de (above) Antonyms: sous (below, under), dessous, au-dessous-de (below) |
| vers | towards | un grand pas vers la qualification—a big step towards qualification | |
| vis-à-vis de | opposite, in relation to | il porte une responsabilité vis-à-vis de l'équipe—he carries a responsibility in relation to the team | |
| voici | here is, here are | voici le but de l'année—here is the goal of the year | |
| voilà | there is, there are | voilà pourquoi nous avons perdu—that is why we lost |
Acknowledgements
This page is based on original text from French/Grammar/Prepositions dated 21 January 2010.
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