When it comes to prepositions in French, understanding them can get a little difficult. They don’t always line up with English prepositions and you can’t just swap words and expect your sentences to sound right. But don’t worry—these small words like à, de, en, and dans can help you express where things are, when events happen, and how actions connect, much clearly. For example, dans means “in,” à often shows direction, and en marks time. In our blog below, we will talk about what are prepositions in French and their different types to help you speak naturally and fluently. Read on!
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Before we talk about the different types of French prepositions and how you can use them, let’s first understand what are prepositions in French and how they differ from the ones in English.
To put it simply, prepositions in French are words that we put after a noun, verb, or adjective to link them to other words in a sentence in order to show time, place, direction, or other aspects. For example, “Je vais à l'école” (I am going to school.) Here, “à” is a preposition which is showing a relationship between “vais” and “school.”
Even though prepositions are a big part of the English language as well, their usage and meaning are completely different in French. In addition to that, prepositions in French are a little more specific than their English counterparts.
Also Read: Days of Week in French
There are different types of prepositions in French, which are generally classified based on their function and the relationship they express, like location, time, and manner. Below, you will find a French prepositions list based on their function.
In French, prepositions de lieu (Prepositions of place) and les prepositions de lieu (Prepositions of location) are the most common and useful prepositions that show where something is located or where something is going, like a language map.
Below is a list of different prepositions of location in French as well as of place, along with their meaning in English and examples in a sentence.
| French Preposition | English Meaning | Example (FR) | Translation (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|
| à | at / to / in | Je suis à l’école. | I am at school. |
| dans | in / inside | Le livre est dans le sac. | The book is in the bag. |
| sur | on / on top of | Le chat est sur la table. | The cat is on the table. |
| sous | under / beneath | Les chaussures sont sous le lit. | The shoes are under the bed. |
| devant | in front of | Il y a une voiture devant la maison. | There is a car in front of the house. |
| derrière | behind | Le jardin est derrière la maison. | The garden is behind the house. |
| entre | between | Le parc est entre deux écoles. | The park is between two schools. |
| près de | near / close to | La boulangerie est près de la gare. | The bakery is near the station. |
| loin de | far from | Il habite loin de son travail. | He lives far from his work. |
| au-dessus de | above / over | La lampe est au-dessus de la table. | The lamp is above the table. |
| au-dessous de | below / underneath | Le chat est au-dessous de la chaise. | The cat is below the chair. |
| à côté de | next to / beside | Elle est assise à côté de moi. | She is sitting next to me. |
| en face de | across from / opposite | La poste est en face de la banque. | The post office is across from the bank. |
| autour de | around | Il y a une clôture autour de la maison. | There is a fence around the house. |
| au coin de | at the corner of | Le café est au coin de la rue. | The café is at the corner of the street. |
Another common and majorly used type of prepositions in French is relation. As you might have already guessed from the name, it is used to show a relationship, or link different elements between two people or a thing.
Below is a French prepositions list of relations along with a few examples for you to understand their use case better.
| French Preposition | English Meaning | Example (FR) | Translation (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|
| de | of/from/ about | Le livre de Marie est sur la table. | Marie's book is on the table. |
| avec | with | Il travaille avec son frère. | He works with his brother. |
| sans | without | Je ne peux pas vivre sans musique. | I can't live without music. |
| selon | according to | Selon Paul, c’est une bonne idée. | According to Paul, it’s a good idea. |
| pour | for | Ce cadeau est pour toi. | This gift is for you. |
| contre | against | Il est contre cette décision. | He is against that decision. |
| envers | toward (emotionally) | Il est gentil envers ses amis. | He is kind toward his friends. |
| par | by/through/per | Le livre est écrit par Victor Hugo. | The book is written by Victor Hugo. |
| entre | between | Le secret reste entre nous. | The secret stays between us. |
| parmi | among | Il est populaire parmi ses collègues. | He is popular among his coworkers. |
| à cause de | because of (negative cause) | Il est en retard à cause de la pluie. | He is late because of the rain. |
| grâce à | thanks to (positive cause) | J’ai réussi grâce à ton aide. | I succeeded thanks to your help. |
| au lieu de | instead of | Il est allé au cinéma au lieu de travailler. | He went to the movies instead of working. |
| quant à | as for | Quant à moi, je préfère rester ici. | As for me, I prefer to stay here. |
Also Read: Introduction in French
In French, we use different types of prepositions of time to express how long something has been going on or when it happened. The list of time prepositions in French with English translation below will help you understand how these prepositions describe when something happens or its duration in time.
| French Preposition | English Meaning | Example (FR) | Translation (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|
| à | at (clock time) | Le train part à 8 heures. | The train leaves at 8 o’clock. |
| en | in (months, years, seasons) | Je pars en juillet. | I’m leaving in July. |
| dans | in (in [amount of time]) | Il reviendra dans une heure. | He will return in an hour. |
| depuis | since / for (ongoing action) | J'habite ici depuis 2010. | I’ve lived here since 2010. |
| pendant | during / for (completed time) | J’ai dormi pendant deux heures. | I slept for two hours. |
| pour | for (intended duration) | Il est parti pour une semaine. | He left for a week. |
| jusqu’à | until / up to | Je travaille jusqu’à 18h. | I work until 6 p.m. |
| vers | around / about (approx. time) | Il arrivera vers midi. | He’ll arrive around noon. |
| avant | before | Nous dînons avant le film. | We’re having dinner before the movie. |
| après | after | On sortira après le dîner. | We’ll go out after dinner. |
| dès | as soon as / starting from | Je suis disponible dès lundi. | I’m available starting from Monday. |
| au moment de | at the time of / when | Il est arrivé au moment de mon départ. | He arrived when I was leaving. |
| à partir de | starting from (specific time) | Le magasin ouvre à partir de 9h. | The store opens starting from 9 a.m. |
| entre... et... | between... and... | Le cours est entre 14h et 16h. | The class is between 2 and 4 p.m. |
Lastly, to speak about a particular country in French, we use different prepositions based on whether the country name starts with a vowel, the gender of the country and their form (singular or plural).
The list of prepositions in French for countries below will help you understand French grammar and improve your vocabulary related to geography.
| Situation | Preposition | English Meaning | Example (FR) | Translation (EN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feminine countries (usually ending in -e) | en | to/in | Je vais en France. | I’m going to France. |
| Masculine countries | au | to/in | Il habite au Canada. | He lives in Canada. |
| Masculine countries starting with a vowel | en | to/in | Elle va en Iran. | She’s going to Iran. |
| Plural country names | aux | to/in | Nous allons aux États-Unis. | We’re going to the United States. |
| Coming from a feminine country | de | from | Elle vient de France. | She’s coming from France. |
| Coming from a masculine country | du | from | Il revient du Japon. | He’s coming from Japan. |
| Coming from a plural country | des | from | Ils arrivent des Pays-Bas. | They’re arriving from the Netherlands. |
Now that you understand what are prepositions in French, and its types. Let’s talk about prepositional phrases and how we use them to link elements of a sentence.
To put it simply, there are prepositions in French that combine with either a noun or a pronoun in order to work as a single preposition. They are used to give much more detailed information regarding a location, time, place, or relation. Below are a few commonly used prepositional phrases in French:
| Category | French Prepositional Phrase | English Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Location | en deçà de | on this side of / below |
| au-delà de | beyond/on the other side of | |
| à l’écart de | apart from / away from | |
| aux alentours de | around/in the vicinity of | |
| du côté de | on the side of | |
| à l’horizon de | on the horizon of | |
| à l’extrémité de | at the extremity/end of | |
| à l’angle de | at the corner of | |
| Time | en l’espace de | within (a certain time frame) |
| à l’aube de | at dawn / at the break of day | |
| au crépuscule de | at twilight/dusk | |
| à la veille de | on the eve of | |
| en plein milieu de | in the middle of | |
| dans le courant de | during/in the course of | |
| à la suite de | following / as a result of | |
| en marge de | on the margins of (figurative, time, or place) | |
| Place | au sein de | at the heart of/within |
| à l’intérieur même de | right inside/within | |
| aux confins de | at the borders/confines of | |
| au pied de | at the foot of (a mountain, hill, building) | |
| à la lisière de | at the edge/border of | |
| dans les environs de | in the surroundings of | |
| au cœur même de | right at the heart of | |
| Countries/Regions | au cœur de l’Europe | in the heart of Europe |
| en plein territoire de | right in the territory of | |
| aux portes de | at the gates of / on the threshold of | |
| à la frontière de | at the border of | |
| dans les territoires occupés de | in the occupied territories of | |
| Relation / Cause | en vertu de | by virtue of / under the authority of |
| en conformité avec | in accordance with | |
| en liaison avec | in connection with | |
| en présence de | in the presence of | |
| sous prétexte de | under the pretext of | |
| au nom de | in the name of | |
| au regard de | with regard to / considering | |
| en déférence à | out of respect for |
Also Read: Numbers in French
If you’re just starting to learn French, understanding different prepositions in French and their types can help you sound more natural and improve your fluency. In this blog, we’ve explored common prepositions in French with English translation and clear examples to help you get started.
French grammar can be challenging, but with the help of language experts at Gradding.com, it doesn’t have to be. Our team offers personalized support tailored to your learning style and goals, making your journey smoother and faster.
Also Read: Months in French
For the verb “aller” (to go) in French, we generally use the verb à to indicate the destination. However, we can also combine “à” with definite articles like le, la, les, and la to form prepositions like au, à la, aux, and à la. In addition to this, we can also use en with “aller” when talking about modes of transportation or referring to places.
The most common French prepositions are "à", "de", "dans", "en", "pour", "avec", and "chez”, which are generally used to indicate or talk about location, direction, time, manner, or purpose.
Some common rules for prepositions in French are that it does not change their form based on gender or number, and you can’t end a sentence with them. In addition to this, they always come before the noun or pronoun they are modifying.
Yes, depending on the context, one French preposition can have multiple meanings. For example, "à" can mean "at," "to," or "in." On the other hand, "en" can mean in or by, and "pour" can mean for, to, or as for.
No, do not use French and English prepositions in the same way, even though both languages use them to indicate relationships. In addition to this, even though many prepositions have a direct translation, their uses can differ slightly.
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