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Des in French. Articles in French (Les Articles)

11.12.2023

In the eyes of Russian people, France looks like something sophisticated and intelligent. The rich culture of this country attracts tourists from all over the world, the architectural heritage amazes the minds of sophisticated connoisseurs, and traditions encourage relaxation and leisurely dreams. Visiting France is the number one goal for all romantics in the world. But before you carry out your plans, you should get acquainted with the local language: the French do not like to speak English and are extremely reluctant to listen to it.

French is the language of elite society

The nineteenth century entered Russian history as French: in those days, noble society could not imagine communicating in another language. Until now, it is considered a sign of luxury and wealth, and those who master it perfectly are people of considerable intelligence. However, learning the language of capricious France is not so easy: in addition to the many tenses and irregular verbs, there is a smaller, but no less significant difficulty - articles in French.

Why are articles needed?

It is difficult for a Russian to understand what function articles perform in French speech, since they have no analogues in their native language. However, for the French, the presence of articles is extremely important: with their help, they convey information about whether the subject of conversation has been mentioned before, whether it appears in speech for the first time, or whether some part of it is being spoken about. Articles in the French language play one of the main roles, so it is impossible to miss this topic, considering that it is useless to know it.

Types of French articles

Unlike common English, which contains only two articles, French boasts three types of particles: definite, indefinite and partial. Separately, you will have to memorize fused articles, but this task is the last on the list of those that should be completed to fully understand French grammar.

Definite article

The definite article in French is one of the most common particles. Each text will necessarily contain more than a dozen specific nouns. Such particles are used with words that have been encountered before, or with those that are a priori unique.

For example: Le Soleil éclaire la Terre - The sun illuminates the Earth. In this case, both the Sun and the Earth mean unique concepts - they are the only ones in the world, and there can be no talk of any others.

Une femme traverse la rue. La femme est jeune et belle. - A woman is crossing the street. The woman is young and beautiful. In this case we are talking about a woman already familiar from the previous remark, so the definite article is used. For ease of understanding, you can mentally replace it with the words “this”, “this”, “this”.

Indefinite article

On the contrary, it indicates an unfamiliar object. In French, it can be used before nouns that belong only to a certain class.

For example: C"est une belle bague - This is a beautiful ring. In this case, the word “ring” is not only used for the first time, but also denotes class - not everyone has beautiful rings.

Une femme lui a telephone. - The woman called him. The word “woman” had not been used before, and who exactly called was not specified, so the word is preceded by the indefinite article une.

This type of article can be mentally defined by the words “some”, “some”, “some”. To use this grammatical unit correctly, you only need to understand the meaning of its use: the indefinite article indicates something unknown and non-specific.

Partial article

The partial article in French is used to denote uncountable objects and abstract concepts. Uncountable objects include food, matter (air, water), material, generalizing words (noise, for example).

The shape of this particle deserves special attention. They are formed by adding the preposition de to the definite article. For greater clarity, it is better to familiarize yourself with the table.

Examples of use: Je mange du viande - I eat meat. In this case, the partial article indicates that the action occurs with a separate unit of the product. “A person cannot eat all the provisions,” the French think, “this must be noted.”

Vous avez du courage. - You are brave. Bravery is an abstract concept that cannot be measured.

French articles: ways to memorize

For a better understanding, it is worth working on the topic that the French language mainly consists of - “Articles”. The exercises will put everything in its place, and the topic will be easy to remember. A good example of exercises are tasks in which you need to insert one of the types of articles in place of the gap.

Exercise 1

Use an article that makes sense.
1) Marie adore __ roses (answer: les).
2) Robert écrit __ texte, c’est __ texte sur __ cinéma (answer: un, un, le).
3) C'est __ nappe. C'est __ nappe de Julie. __ nappe est sur __ bureau (answer: une, la, la, le).

There are several ways to help avoid confusion in the use of articles. They mainly involve structuring grammatical rules. Thus, you need to remember that indefinite articles in French are used with nouns that appear for the first time, as well as with unknown concepts. Partial article - with something abstract and uncountable. With the words "water" and food names, the partial article can be mentally replaced with the word "part". All that remains is the definite article, which is used in all other cases.

Articles help to correctly understand the speech of your interlocutor, translate any text, and easily compose a sentence. In French they are very important, because the correct structure of a sentence is ensured by these particles. There is no need to cram the rules: understanding is what really matters. And it will definitely come, you just need to try a little.

The preposition “de” - from, from, about.
It serves for education:
- indirect object to the verb:
Le père et la mère doivent tous s’occuper des enfants. The father and mother should both care for the child.
- agential complement in the passive voice after verbs expressing feeling:
Il est très estimé de ses collègues. He is respected by his colleagues.
- adverb complements: adverb + de + noun:
Il a acheté beaucoup de fleurs. He bought a lot of flowers.
Combien de jours as-tu passés à Berlin ? How many days did you spend in Berlin?
- additions to an adjective or participle:
Elle très contente de son travaille. She is very pleased with her work.
La pièse est innondée du soleil. The room is flooded with sun.
The preposition “De” merges with the definite article “le”, “les”, forming the fused article “du”, “des”:
Il parle du travail des collègues. He talks about the work of his colleagues.
When it forms the object of a noun, the preposition indicates:
- what the item contains:
J'ai bu une tasse de café avant d'aller au travail. I drank a cup of coffee before leaving for work.
- belonging, possession:
La maison de son grand-père était très vieille. His grandfather's house was very old.
Il a pris le cahier de son fils. He took his son's notebook.
- quantity, measure of something:
Achète un kilo de poires et un paquet de lait. Buy a kilo of pears and a carton of milk.
Prends aussi une bouteille de vin. Buy a bottle of wine too.

But:
After the words la plupart, le reste, la moitié, une partie, bien, the preposition “de” and the definite article are used:
Half of something, most, remainder, part, a lot of something.
La plupart des enfants fréquentent l’école maternelle. Most children go to kindergarten.
- price, weight, cost:
Un billet de 100 euros - 100 euro bill, un melon de 2 kilos - 2 kg melon
- abstract characteristic:
Un peintre de talent - A talented artist, un homme de coeur - a kind-hearted person.
- material, substance:
Il a obtenu la médaille d’or. He received a gold medal.
Elle porte un pulle de laine et un pantalon de cuir. She wears a wool jumper and leather trousers.
Instead of the preposition “de” to express the direct meaning, you can use the preposition “en”:
Le pull en laine - Woolen jumper, la médaille en or - gold medal, un pantalon en cuir - leather pants;
To convey a figurative meaning, only “de” is used:
Un caractère d’or - Golden character, une femme de coeur - a kind-hearted woman.
- definition to the addition, expressing various relationships: name, type, genre:
Une salle d’attente - Waiting room, salle de conférence - conference room - appointment;
Un chien de chasse - Hunting dog - species;
La musiaue de chambre - Chamber music - genre.
“De” is used after the negation of “rien” and the expression “quelque chose”:
Rien de grave. Nothing serious. Rien d'intéressant. Nothing interesting.
Dites-lui quelque chose de bon pour la consoler. Say something nice to her to calm her down.
When he introduces a circumstance, the "de" preposition expresses:
- origin, starting point, removal in time or space:
Elle est de Marseille. She (come) from Marseille.
Il revient de Belgique dans une semaine. He returns from Belgium in a week.
If the name of a country is feminine or masculine, starting with a vowel, then in the assignment “of” only the preposition “de” is used:
De France - From France, d’Irac - from Iraq.
In other cases, the continuous article “du”, “des” is used:
Elle est venue de Maroc. She came from Morocco. La délégation arrive des Etats Unis. The delegation arrives from the USA.
- reason:
La femme pleurait de joie. The woman cried with joy. Il est devenu rouge de colère. He turned red with anger.
Usually they use “de” + a noun without an article when talking about abstract concepts:
Mourir de peur - Die from fear, de fatigue - from fatigue, d’ennui - from boredom...
- method, tool:
Montrer du doigt - Point with your finger, chercher des yeux - look with your eyes, jouer du violon - play the violin, de la guitare - play the guitar
- manner:
Elle parlait d'une voix tremblante. She spoke in a trembling voice. A ses 80 ans il marche d'un bon pas. At 80 years old, he still walks quite quickly.
- measure
Il a grandi de 20 centimètres en deux ans. He grew 20 centimeters in two years.
- quantity:
Il y a trop de dumée ici. There's too much smoke here.
Une foule de gens se pressait devant la porte. A crowd of people stood in front of the door.
The combination of the prepositions “à” and “de” means a restriction between two elements:
- in time:
Le magasin ouvre ses portes de 9 à 21 heures de lundi au samedi inclu. The store is open from 9 am to 9 pm from Monday to Saturday.
- in space:
Il y a une centaine de mètres de ma maison au métro. There are a hundred meters from my house to the metro.
- in quantity:
La voiture peut contenir de 2 à 5 gens. The car can accommodate from 2 to 5 people.
- in price:
Au marché les pommes coûtent de 7 à 12 euros. At the market, apples cost from 7 to 12 euros.

In negative sentences, after most verbs, only the preposition “de” is used to indicate complete negation if the noun is used with an indefinite article:
Ils n'ont pas d'enfants. They have no children.
J'ai acheté des fleures mais je n'ai pas acheté de vin. I bought flowers but didn't buy wine.
Ma fille ne mange de pain. My daughter doesn't eat bread.
After the verbs “aimer, adorer, préférer, détester” the definite article is used in the negative form, because We are talking about a concept, not a specific substance:
Je n'aime pas les oranges. I don't like oranges.
Il détestait les jeux cruels. He hates violent games.

Used after the verb “faire” and the impersonal phrase “il y a,” the preposition “de” most often merges with the definite articles “le” and “les,” forming the fused article “du” and “des.”
Il fait de la journalisme. He is engaged in journalism.
Il y a du brouillard et du vent aujourd'hui. Today is foggy and windy.

The “De” preposition is part of the partial article “du, de l’, des”, which is used before uncountable nouns to denote an indefinite amount of a substance:
Achèt du pain, de l'huile et du lait. Buy bread, butter and milk.

Natalya Glukhova

Articles in French (Les Articles)

28/05 2017

Good afternoon friends! Today I will tell you about articles in French. Back in the 18th – 19th centuries, French was considered the most romantic language in Russia. This is due not only to culture, but also to the unusual pronunciation of words and expressions in the language.

Guttural sounds and articles in French add piquancy and some peculiarity to speech. There are no such parts of speech in Russian, so in the modern world, foreign language learners often omit this grammatical form, but this is completely in vain. After all, these little words have a very big meaning. Let's get to know them better.

All articles can be divided into three main groups: definite, indefinite and partial. Each of them has its own meaning and rules of use. Each group contains several words used before nouns.

From this article you will learn:

From context

The most frequently used article is the definite article (Articles definis). It can usually be found in stories, because its use depends on the meaning of the text. Such particles are placed before words denoting objects that have already been discussed before.

In this way, the speaker shows that he is referring to the very thing that was mentioned earlier. Such a particle can also be used with one-of-a-kind objects. For example: la Terre - Earth.
There are three grammatical types of Articles definitions:

An illustration with examples will help you quickly remember these particles:

Remember that the abbreviation L' can only be used before silent h and before vowels. If the preposition a is in front of le/les, then they merge into fused articles au/aux. This is reflected in the table below.
Except in cases related to the rule, you should select Articles defines when you are talking about:

Dates: le 10 mars – March 10.
Geographical names: Les Alpes - Alps.
Colors: le rouge – red.
The same rule applies to the use of articles with names of countries: la Bretagne. - Britain.

It's simple, isn't it? Well, then let's move on.

We don’t know - we don’t determine

If we are talking about a subject for the first time in a conversation or you do not know who or what exactly you are talking about, and do not specify it, then you need to use the indefinite article - Articles indefinis.

There are also three of these particles and their use depends on the grammatical characteristics of the noun.

For example, when you talk about a dog, without meaning any specific one, but only pay attention to the gender or quantity:

If you are talking about something or someone and talking about them for the first time in your story, then you also use indefinite particles. Later in your story, when naming these objects or people, you will already use the particle Le/La/Les.

There are cases when Articles indefinis is replaced by the preposition de:

In negatives, except être: Noous n’avons pas de hareng. (We don't have herring).
If there is an adjective or quantitative adverb before a plural noun: Ils ont de grandes chambres. (They have big rooms).

In addition, choose the indefinite article when you want to say a phrase with phrases c’est/ ce sont. C'est un livre. This is a book.

Partial articles are formed by adding de to definite particles. At the same time, note that in some cases de merges with le and the result is a merged du. Similarly, a merged des is obtained.

Consider the table below. It will help you better remember the uses and changes of partial articles:

Special Expressions

There are times when you do not need to use any of the listed articles:

Possessive pronouns or demonstrative pronouns replace the article: Ceci est ma plume. - This is my pen.
Words denoting profession, activity, position and nation: Il est américain - He is an American.
Seasons are also used without particles: l’hiver. - Winter.
From the names of the cities: Je vis à Moscow. - I live in Moscow.

There is no part of speech similar to articles in the Russian language. But if regularly

Articles in French, like many other languages, are divided into definite and indefinite.

Definite article: le (m.r., singular); – la (f.r., singular); - l" (m.r. and zh.r., singular, if the word begins with a vowel or silent h); - les (f.r. and m.r., plural)

We use the definite article to name a specific being, a specific person, or a specific thing. The definite article for the singular becomes “l’” before a noun beginning with a vowel or silent h.

Examples : Je suis Julie, la fille de Collette. (I'm Julie, Colette's daughter).

La cliente voudrait un gâteau au chocolat. (The client would like a chocolate cake).

Les deux frères sont très différents. (The two brothers are very different.)

Ce sont les parents de Felix? (Are these Felix's parents?)

C'est la collègue de Thomas. (This is Thomas' colleague.)

Fabienne invite ses enfants à la maison. (Fabien invites his children to his home.)

The definite article can be accompanied by prepositions à or de and then it forms continuous article:

a + le = au a + la = à la a + l’ = a l' a + les = aux
de + le = du de + la = de la de + l' = de l' de + les = des

Examples:

Vous dînez au restaurant, ce soir? (Are you having dinner at a restaurant tonight?)
Ils voyagent souvent à l "étranger. (They often travel abroad.)
Il va souvent dans des marches aux puces en ville. (He often goes to the city's flea markets.)
Art Plus, c'est le magazine des arts. (Art Plus is a magazine about art.)

We use definite article:

1. Before the names of the parts of the day. Examples : Le matin(Morning). / À 2 heuresdu matin(At 2 o'clock in the morning).

2. Before the days of the week. Examples: Nous dejeunons ensemble le lundi et le vendredi. (We have lunch together on Mondays and Fridays). (i.e. every Monday and every Friday we have lunch together.) But: Il reviendra mardi. (He will be back on Tuesday).

3. Before dates.Examples: Il reviendra le 17 octobre.(He will return on October 17). Je vais reprendre le travail le 8 juin. (I will start work again on June 8th). Le 15 août est la fête natinalle. (August 15 is a national holiday).

4. Before the seasons.Examples:: Aprésl' a utomne c'estl' h iver (After autumn comes winter).

5. Before geographical names.Examples : les Pyrénées (Pyrenees),la Seine (Seine),la Bretagne(Britain)…

6. To name peoples and languages. Examples : les Belges(Belgians), les Anglais (English)… / l' anglais (English language), le grec (Greek language)… Example: Elle parle parfaitement le japonais! (She speaks excellent Japanese!)

7. To name colors.Examples : le blanc (white),le rouge (red).

8. Before superlatives. Example: Set écrivain est le plus celebre en France. (This writer is the most famous in France).

9. To indicate the measure. Example : Les prices cost 4 euros le kilo. (Cherry costs 4 euros per kilogram).

10. To give approximate, approximate figures.Example :Ce jeune homme doit avoirla trentaine.(This young man is about 30 years old).

11. Before some holidays. Examples : La Saint-Nicolas (St. Nicolas day),l' Ascension (Ascension),la Pentecôte (Trinity Day).But: Noël (Christmas), Pâques (Easter)

12. In front of body parts. Example: Elle se love les mains. (She washes her hands.)

P.S. After the verbaimer(to love) we write onlydefinite article! Example: Vous aimez les lanques étrangères? (Do you like foreign languages?)

We do not use the article:

· Before proper names and names of cities, except for masculine city names. Examples : Athènes (Athens)/Le Havre/Paul(Paul), Mari (Marie), Collette (Colette)…

· Before monsieur, madame, mademoiselle. Example : Voilà Mademoiselle Lemoine.(Here is Mademoiselle Lemoine).

Indefinite article: un (m.r., singular) – une (f.r., singular) – d es(m.r. and f.r., plural) And partial article: du (m.r.) – de la (f.r.) – de l’(m.r. and zh.r. before a vowel orhmute) – des

We use indefinite article to name beings, people or things that are not specific, identified, meanwhile, partial article names some part of the whole.

Examples :

Elle achète un sandwich. (She buys a sandwich).
Collette est une amie de Françoise. (Colette is Françoise's friend).
Je prépare une conférence pour deux cents personnes, en mai. (I'm preparing a conference for 200 people in May.)
Vous avez un rendez-vous? (Are you having a meeting?)
Ils mangent une tarte. (They eat cake).
Vous regardez un documentaire a la television. (You are watching a documentary on TV).
C'est fantastique d'étudier une nouvelle langue! (It's great fun to learn a new language!)
Ils organisent une grande soirée pour leurs parents. (They are organizing a big party for their parents).
Il achete de l'aspirine, de l'huile, de l'eau. (He buys aspirin, oil, water).
Prends de la vitamine C! (Take some vitamin C!)
J"écoute de la music. (I listen to music).
Elle a ordonné des legumes avec du beurre. (She ordered vegetables with butter).
On peut y voir des vases, des lampes, des photos, de la vaisselle. (You can find vases, lamps, photos, dishes there.)
J'ai des amis à Québec. (I have friends in Quebec.)

We replace the indefinite article and partial article with the preposition de:

1. Before a plural adjective. Examples: Jules trouve chaque fois de beaux objets. (Jules always finds beautiful objects.) But we keep the article when adjective + noun = compound noun. Examples: Nous visitons souvent des Residences secondaires de nos parents. (We often visit our relatives' country houses.)

2. After an adverb or expression of quantity: beaucoup de(a lot of),peu de(few), plus de(more), moins de(less)…Examples: Beaucoup de tourists étrangers visitent la France. (Many foreign tourists visit France). Nous voyons plus de films ici qu’à Lyon. (We watch more films here than in Lyon). But: Bien des gens aiment voyager à l'étranger. (Many people like to travel abroad).

3. After expressions:un morceau de(a piece…) une tranche de(chunk, piece, cut...), one kilo de(kilogram…) une bouteille de(bottle …), un paquet de(package, bundle, pack...), un mètre de(meter…), …. Examples: Un kilo de pommes de terre (Kilogram of potatoes), Un paquet de biscuits (Pack of cookies)

4. In negation (except when the verb être is used in the phrase).Examples : Il ne boit pasde lait.(He doesn’t drink milk).Nous n’avons pasde saumon. (We don't have salmon).

But we do not change the form of the article if the negation does not apply to the entire phrase, but only to its separate part. Example:Marie ne boit pas d u café mais d u thé. (Marie doesn't drink coffee, but she does drink tea).

5. P after the preposition "sans" (without). Example: Il boit son thé sans sucre.(He prefers to drink coffee without sugar).Je voudrais un sandwich sans beurre. (I would like a sandwich without butter).

We also talked about indefinite articles in our new video lesson:

You can get more detailed advice from the author of the article, Elena Sergeevna Aksenova, or sign up for a lesson with any of our tutors.

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