Prepositions describe where and when something is in relation to something else. Get to grips with some commonly used French prepositions and check your understanding with activities and a quiz.
The prepositionA preposition is a word such as 'at', 'for', 'with', 'into' or 'from' which is usually followed by a noun or pronoun. They are used to show where something is in place or time.à is usually used with aller (to go) or être (to be.) To say ‘to the’ or ‘at the’, use à and the definite articleMeans 'the'. Definite articles change depending on whether the noun it goes with is masculine, feminine, singular or plural.. For masculineAll nouns in French are either masculine or feminine. and pluralMore than one of an item.nounThe name of a thing such as an object, a place or a person. Nouns are often described as naming words., contract the words to make a new word. The table below shows how it works.
masculine
feminine
before a vowel or silent h
plural
à + le → au
à la
à l’
à + les → aux
masculine
feminine
before a vowel or silent h
plural
à + le → au
à la
à l’
à + les → aux
For example:
Je vais au supermarché. – I’m going to the supermarket.
Ma mère est à la piscine. – My mother is at the swimming pool.
Elle voudrait aller à l’université. – She would like to go to university.
Je suis allée au centre commercial. – I went to the shopping centre.
Nous allons à la montagne. – We are going to the mountains.
Towns and cities
With names of towns and cities, whether you are going to the place or you are already in it, use à:
