1. of, from
de
Contractions: du, des
2. about
IPA: /d?/
Vos clés sont derrière votre lit. Your keys
derrière
behind
are behind your bed.
devant
in front of
Used mostly to indicate distance
en
in
in time or space.
Also a pronoun.
ici
here
Il est ici. He Is Here.
Où est-elle? Elle est là, dans cette
là
there
maison-là. Where is she? She is in that
house over there.
Le lycée est loin de la plage. The School is
loin de
far
far from the beach.
1. through
par
Also a noun: le par - (golf) par
2. by, for
La bibliothèque est près de la plage. The
près de
near
Library is near the beach
pour
for
Ils l'ont fait pour toi. They made it for you. IPA: /pur/
Elles veulent avoir une fête sans alcool.
sans
without
They want to have a party without alcohol.
La terre est sous le ciel. The Earth is under
sous
under
the sky.
1. on
Synonyms: au-dessus de (above)
2. upon
Antonyms: sous (below, under)
3. on top of
Antonyms: dessous,
4. above
sur
La maison est sur la terre. The house is on au-dessous-de (below)
5. out of
top of the ground
Also an adjective: m sing,
6. sept sur dix
meaning sure
(seven out of
IPA: /syr/ (audio)
ten)
Pronouns
Subject pronouns
Singular
Plural
First person Second person Third person First person Second person Third person (I)
(you)
(he, she, it)
(we, us)
(you)
(they)
Je
Tu, (Vous*) Il, Elle, On**
Nous
Vous
Ils, Elles***
* Tu is informal and used only with well-known acquaintances. In case of unknown persons you have to use the polite form Vous. A good example, to explain that is the following: If two business acquaintances meet another, they say Vous. If they later fall in love, they say Tu. When unsure, it is better to say "vous." Also, grammatically, even the singular form of "vous" behaves as though it were a plural, so even if you are addressing only one person, you would still use verbal grammar consistent with addressing multiple people, similar to English (as in "you are", "you [all] are", "they are.") Nevertheless, the adjectives or past participles are declined according to the true number of the referring pronoun.
Examples, addressing one person:
Tu chantes - you sing (informal)
Vous chantez - you sing (polite) - (also, to address many persons)
Tu es grand - You are tall (informal)
Vous êtes grand - You are tall (polite, male)
Vous êtes grande - You are tall (polite, female)
Examples, addressing many persons:
Vous êtes grands - You are tall (informal or polite, male, many persons) Vous êtes grandes - You are tall (informal or polite, female, many persons)
