Prepositions
French: AQA A Level, topic 12.8.1
In, To, Of
Prepositions are words like 'in', 'to' or 'of'. They let you add more detail to a sentence.
'À' - 'at', 'to' or 'in'
- 'À' can be translated as 'at', 'to' or 'in' depending on how it's used.
- 'À' changes when followed by 'le' or 'les'.
- À + le → au - masculine singular.
- Je vais au ciné - I go to the cinema.
- À + la → à la - feminine singular.
- Je suis à la plage - I am at the beach.
- À + l' → à l' - before a vowel or 'h'.
- À + les → aux - masculine, feminine plural.
'En' can mean 'in' or 'to'
- 'En' is used instead of 'à' before countries that are feminine or start with a vowel.
- J'habite en France - I live in France.
- Je suis allé en Inde - I went to India.
- 'En' can be used to describe how long it takes to do something or when saying something happened at a specific time.
- J'y suis allé en janvier - I went there in January.
- Je l'ai fait en dix minutes - I did it in 10 minutes.
- 'En' can be used to say what something's made of.
- Un pull en laine - a wool jumper.
'De' can mean 'of' or 'from'
- 'De' can mean 'of'.
- Une verre d' eau - a glass of water.
- Une tasse de café - a mug of coffee.
- Like 'à', 'de' changes with 'le' and 'les'.
- De + le → Du - masculine singular.
- De + la → De la - feminine singular.
- De + l' → De l' - before a vowel or some 'h'.
- De + les → Des - masculine, feminine plural.
Verbs That Use 'A' or 'De'
Some verbs are only followed by 'à' or 'de'.
'À'
- (S')intéresser à - to be interested in.
- Aider à - to help.
- Écrire à - to write to.
- Rendre visite à - to visit (someone).
- Demander à - to ask (something of/to).
- Parler à - to speak to.
- Téléphoner à - to phone (someone).
- Faire attention à - to pay attention to.
- Répondre à - to reply.
'De'
- S'agir de - to be about.
- Manquer de - to lack.
- Profiter de - to make the most of.
- Avoir envie, besoin, peur de - to want, need, be scared of.
- Penser de - to have an opinion about.
- Dépendre de - depend on.
- Se méfier de - to not trust.
Jouer - to play
- The verb 'jouer' takes different prepositions depending on what the object is.
- Jouer à - to play (sport)
- Jouer de - to play (instrument).
Test yourself on Prepositions
In French, the United States is 'Les États-Unis'. How do you say I went to the 'United States' in French?
'Je viens __ Japon'
What is the correct preposition to complete this sentence?How do you say 'to reply to' in French?
'Je joue __ rugby'
What is the correct preposition to complete this sentence?