French Unpacked

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One word, many jobs

The Prepositions page goes from English to French: you know the English word and need the French one. This page goes the other way. A learner meets a French word and wants to know which job it is doing. Each card below takes one word and lists its common uses, with an example and the English for each.
Un mot, plusieurs emplois.

One word, four English words

French de is in all four sentences below. English uses a different word in each one. A learner who meets de has to decide which job it is doing before choosing the English.

  1. English says “’s”Le livre de Luc.Luc’s book.
  2. English says “from”Je viens de Paris.I come from Paris.
  3. English says “of”Un verre de vin.A glass of wine.
  4. English says “any”Je n’ai pas de pain.I don’t have any bread.

The same is true of à, en, que, on, and of a few pronouns and small words: le, la, les, se, y.

Jump to de · à · en · on · que · le / la / les · se · y / en

Mix-ups to watch for

Each pair of sentences is diagrammed. The first two compare “a cup of coffee” and “a coffee cup”, which French separates with de and à. The third shows ownership with à, where English uses ’s. The last two show on, which English renders as “people” or “we”.

Prepositions

These are the common uses, not a complete list. For how à and de combine with an article, see Prepositions.

de

Before a vowel, de becomes d’: un verre d’eau (a glass of water). With le and les it combines into du and des.

  1. PossessionLe livre de Luc.Luc’s book.

    Also: la voiture de Camille (Camille’s car). French has no ’s. The owner comes after the thing owned. More on Possessives

  2. From, with venirJe viens de Paris.I come from Paris.

    Also: Elle est de Lyon (She is from Lyon). With a country, the form follows its gender: Je viens de France (feminine), Je viens du Canada (masculine), Je viens des États-Unis (plural). More on Prepositions

  3. Contents or amountUn verre de vin.A glass of wine.

    Also: beaucoup de temps (a lot of time), un kilo de pain (a kilo of bread). No article follows de in these: un verre d’eau, beaucoup de temps. Compare une tasse de café (a cup of coffee: coffee is in it) with une tasse à café (a coffee cup), under à.

  4. “Some”, combined with the articleJe veux du pain.I want some bread.

    De + le is du and de + les is des. De la and de l’ stay separate: de la soupe, de l’eau, des pommes. English often has no word for “some”; French usually keeps the article. More on Prepositions

  5. After a negative, du, de la, des, un and une become deJe n’ai pas de pain.I don’t have any bread.

    Also: Je n’ai pas de voiture (I don’t have a car), Il n’y a pas d’eau (There is no water). Compare J’ai du pain (I have some bread). After être the article stays: Ce n’est pas du pain. More on Negation

  6. Before an infinitive, after some verbsJ’essaie de comprendre.I’m trying to understand.

    The verb decides which word follows it: essayer de, décider de, finir de, but commencer à. More on Infinitives

  7. The topic, after parlerOn parle de toi.We’re talking about you.

    Also: Elle parle de toi (She is talking about you). Penser takes à instead: Je pense à toi (I’m thinking about you). More on Prepositions

  8. “More than”, before a numberIl y a plus de dix personnes.There are more than ten people.

    With a number, “more than” is plus de.

à

With le and les, à combines into au and aux: au cinéma, aux États-Unis.

  1. To or in a cityJe vais à Paris.I’m going to Paris.

    Also: J’habite à Paris (I live in Paris). The same word covers going there and being there. Most countries take en or au, below. More on Prepositions

  2. To a person, the indirect objectJe donne le livre à Camille.I give the book to Camille.

    English can leave out “to”: I give Camille the book. The short form is lui: Je lui donne le livre. More on Pronouns

  3. A clock timeLe train part à huit heures.The train leaves at eight.

    Also: à midi (at noon), à huit heures et demie (at half past eight). More on Prepositions

  4. Whose it is, with êtreC’est à moi.It’s mine.

    Also: Ce livre est à Luc (This book is Luc’s), À qui est ce livre ? (Whose book is this?). À + a name or a stressed pronoun (moi, toi, lui, elle) says who owns it. C’est à moi can also mean “It’s my turn”; the situation shows which. More on Possessives

  5. A feature or flavourUne glace à la vanille.A vanilla ice cream.

    Also: la fille aux cheveux bruns (the girl with brown hair). À names what the thing has or is flavoured with. The article combines as usual: un gâteau au chocolat.

  6. Purpose or useUne tasse à café.A coffee cup.

    Also: une machine à laver (a washing machine), une salle à manger (a dining room). The thing is made for that use. Compare une tasse de café (a cup of coffee: coffee is in it) with une tasse à café (a coffee cup: it is for coffee, and may be empty). English puts “coffee” before “cup”; French puts the use after the noun.

  7. MeansJe vais au travail à pied.I go to work on foot.

    Also: à vélo (by bike), à moto (by motorbike). Things you ride astride usually take à. A vehicle you get into usually takes en: en train, en voiture. More on Prepositions

  8. Before an infinitive, after some verbsJe commence à comprendre.I’m starting to understand.

    Also: J’apprends à nager (I’m learning to swim). The verb decides which word follows it: commencer à, apprendre à, but essayer de. More on Infinitives

en

  1. Feminine countries and regionsJ’habite en France.I live in France.

    Also: Je vais en Bretagne (I’m going to Brittany). The same word covers being there and going there. Masculine countries take au and plural ones aux: au Canada, aux États-Unis. A masculine country that starts with a vowel takes en: en Iran. More on Prepositions

  2. Months, most seasons and yearsIl fait chaud en été.It’s hot in summer.

    Also: en mai (in May), en hiver (in winter), en 2020 (in 2020). Spring is the exception: au printemps. More on Prepositions

  3. Transport you sit inJe vais au travail en train.I go to work by train.

    Also: en voiture (by car), en avion (by plane). You get into these. Things you ride astride usually take à: à vélo. On foot is à pied. More on Prepositions

  4. A languageJe lis en français.I read in French.

    To speak a language, French needs no preposition: Je parle français.

  5. What something is made ofUne table en bois.A wooden table.

    Also: Un sac en cuir (a leather bag), La table est en bois (The table is made of wood). En is the usual way to say what something is made of: en bois, en cuir, en verre, also after être. De also appears with materials, mostly in set phrases (une jambe de bois, a wooden leg) and in more formal style, so the two cannot be swapped freely.

  6. “While” or “by”, with the -ant formIl chante en marchant.He sings while walking.

    Also: On apprend en pratiquant (You learn by practising). The -ant form is usually made from the nous form of the verb: marchons gives marchant. English uses an -ing form after “while” or “by”.

  7. The pronoun en, a different word spelled the sameTu parles du film ? Oui, j’en parle.Are you talking about the film? Yes, I’m talking about it.

    More on Y and en

On

On is one of the most common subject pronouns in everyday French, and it has three jobs.

on

The verb after on always has the same form as with il and elle: on va, on mange, on dîne.

  1. “We”, in everyday speechOn va au cinéma ce soir.We’re going to the cinema tonight.

    Nous allons au cinéma means the same. Nous is more formal and is common in writing; in conversation most people say on. Never on allons: the verb is va.

  2. “People”, “you”, “one”, in generalEn France, on dîne tard.In France, people have dinner late.

    Also: On parle français ici (French is spoken here). English has several words for this: people, you, they, one. French uses on for all of them.

  3. “Someone” or “they”, when the doer is unknownOn m’a volé mon vélo.Someone stole my bike. Or: My bike was stolen.

    Also: On frappe à la porte (Someone is knocking at the door). English often uses a passive sentence (“was stolen”). French often keeps an active verb and uses on.

Pronouns and other small words

Each of these has one spelling for several jobs. The words around it show which job it is doing.

que

Before a vowel, que becomes qu’: Il dit qu’il est fatigué (He says he is tired).

  1. “That”, after verbs of saying and thinkingJe pense que c’est vrai.I think (that) it’s true.

    English can leave out “that”. French keeps que.

  2. “Than” and “as”, in comparisonsLuc est plus grand que Camille.Luc is taller than Camille.

    Also: Camille est aussi grande que Luc (Camille is as tall as Luc). Plus … que is “more … than”, moins … que is “less … than” and aussi … que is “as … as”.

  3. “That” or “whom”, joining a description to a nounLe livre que je lis.The book (that) I’m reading.

    Also: la fille que Luc connaît (the girl Luc knows). Use que when the noun is the object of the verb that follows (I read the book). When the noun is the subject, use qui: le garçon qui parle (the boy who is talking). English can leave out “that”; French cannot. More on Parts of speech

  4. “What”, in questionsQu’est-ce que tu fais ?What are you doing?

    Also: Que fais-tu ? (more formal). Qu’est-ce que is the everyday form. In casual speech people often say Tu fais quoi ?

  5. ExclamationsQue c’est beau !How beautiful it is!

    Also: Qu’il fait chaud ! (It’s so hot!). Here que means “how”.

  6. “Only”, with neJe n’ai que dix euros.I only have ten euros.

    Ne … que means “only”. The sentence has ne but it is not negative: it says you have ten euros. More on Negation

le / la / les

  1. “The”Le livre est sur la table.The book is on the table.

    Also: J’aime le café (I like coffee). Le is masculine, la feminine and les plural. Before a vowel, le and la become l’: l’école. French uses the article in places where English uses none. More on Parts of speech

  2. “Him”, “her”, “it”, “them”, before the verbJe le vois.I see him. I see it.

    Also: Je la vois (I see her, I see it), Je les vois (I see them). The pronoun stands for a noun that was already mentioned, and goes before the verb. More on Pronouns

  3. “It”, for a whole ideaJe le sais.I know (it).

    Also: Je ne le savais pas (I didn’t know that). Here le stands for something that was just said or asked, not for a noun. English often has no word there. Je sais is also correct, so le is not required.

se

Se goes with il, elle, on, ils and elles. With je, tu, nous and vous the same pronoun is me, te, nous or vous: Je me lave. Before a vowel, se becomes s’.

  1. Reflexive: the action is done to the subjectLuc se lave.Luc washes (himself).

    Also: Camille se lève à sept heures (Camille gets up at seven). English often has no word for it: Luc washes, Camille gets up. More on Reflexives

  2. Each otherLuc et Camille se voient tous les jours.Luc and Camille see each other every day.

    The subject is plural. Context shows whether it means “themselves” or “each other”: Ils se lavent. More on Reflexives

  3. Passive-like: the subject is the thingCe livre se vend bien.This book sells well.

    Also: Ça se dit ? (Is that said? Is that a real expression?) No one is named as the doer. English uses an active verb (“sells well”) or a passive (“is said”).

For “people in general”, French usually uses on, not se: En France, on dîne tard.

y / en

These two are pronouns. Each one replaces a phrase and goes before the verb.

  1. y: “there”, or a thing after àTu vas à Paris ? Oui, j’y vais.Are you going to Paris? Yes, I’m going there.

    More on Y and en

  2. en: “some”, or a thing after deTu veux du café ? Oui, j’en veux.Do you want some coffee? Yes, I’d like some.

    More on Y and en

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