French prepositions are the little invariable grammatical words that link two words (or groups of words) to create a logical connection. Since you just start learning French, you first need to learn countries’ gender in french, secondly french prepositions for countries and cities, and lastly geographical prepositions in French.
This article will cover all your major concerns about French prepositions so that you can start using them in your everyday life ASAP.
So, let me provide you with the
Table of Contents
French prepositions list
On this French preposition list, you will find the most common ones.
French Prepositions | English Meanings | |
1 | de | of / from |
2 | des, | some |
3 | à | To |
4 | dans, | in, |
5 | pour, | for, |
6 | par, | by, |
7 | avec, | with, |
8 | contre, | against, vs, |
9 | vers, | towards, |
10 | en, | in, |
11 | avant, | before, |
12 | après, | after, |
13 | sans, | without, |
14 | sous | under |
15 | chez, | at the house of, |
16 | concernant, | regarding, |
17 | quant à | as for |
18 | depuis, | since, |
19 | jusque | until |
20 | devant, | before, |
21 | derrière, | behind, |
22 | par, | by, |
23 | Malgré | Despite |
24 | outre, | besides, |
25 | envers, | towards, |
26 | durant | during |
27 | selon | according to |
28 | parmi | among |
29 | nonobstant, | notwithstanding, |
30 | en dépit de | despite |
31 | entre | Between |
32 | pour, | for, |
33 | sauf, | except, |
34 | au moyen de | by means of |
35 | pendant, | during, |
36 | sans, | without, |
37 | vers | towards |
38 | sous, | under, |
39 | sur | on |
40 | suivant, | next, |
41 | à cause de, | because of, |
42 | à la merci de, | at the mercy of, |
43 | à côté de | to the side of, |
44 | afin de, | in order to, |
45 | au-dehors de | outside, |
46 | à l’intérieur | inside |
47 | à défaut de , | in the absence of, |
48 | à force de, | by dint of, |
49 | à l’instar de, | like, |
50 | au lieu de, | instead of, |
51 | en deçà de, | under, |
52 | à la faveur de, | in the favor of, |
53 | à I ‘encontre de, | against, |
54 | à l’exception de, | with the exception of, |
55 | à l’insu de, | unbeknownst to, |
56 | vers | towards |
57 | avant, | before, |
58 | à travers, | through, |
59 | avec, | with, |
60 | en bas de, | below, |
61 | par ricochet | indirectly |
62 | au-dessus de, | above, |
63 | environ / aux environs de, | around |
64 | de manière à, | in such a way that, |
65 | de façon à | so that |
66 | entre, | between, among, |
67 | en outre | in addition |
68 | hors de, | out of, |
69 | au-dessous de, | above |
70 | surtout | especially |
71 | près de, | near, |
72 | au prix de, | at the price of, |
73 | aux alentours de, | around, |
74 | autour de | around |
75 | loin de, | far from, |
76 | par rapport à , | compared to , |
77 | en faveur de, | in favor of, |
78 | de peur que, | for fear that |
79 | du côté de | by the side of |
80 | en dehors de, | apart from, |
81 | en face de, | in front of, |
82 | en guise de, | as a, |
83 | par suite de, | as a result of, |
84 | proche de, | close to, |
85 | quitte à, | At the risk of |
86 | vis-à-vis de… | with respect to… |
87 | à moins que, | unless, |
88 | au fait, | by the way, |
89 | de sorte que, | so that, |
90 | A condition que, | On condition that, |
91 | Pour que | So that |
92 | Dès-que | As soon as |
93 | en fait, | in fact, |
94 | de plus | in addition |
95 | De surcroit | In addition |
96 | entre autres, | among others, |
97 | en plus | in addition, |
98 | en tout cas | anyway, in any case |
99 | en | in, |
100 | d’après | According to |
If you want to learn more about prepositions, click here.
In case you are wondering,
What Are French prepositions for countries
Before using French prepositions for countries, you need to know the country’s gender (masculine / feminine) and sometimes number (Singular or plural). There are 3 French prepositions for countries you need to know: The << en >>, the << au >> and the << aux >>.
So, let’s talk about the
1. The << En > Preposition For Feminin Countries
Syntax: EN + Feminin Country / Continent
Ex : Elle habite en Allemagne. = She lives in Germany
Il voyage en Grèce et en Pologne. = He travels to Greece and Poland.
Elle travaille en France. = she works in France.
Nous allons en Asie. = We are going/go to Asia.
2. The << au>> Prepositions For Masculine Countries
You can use << au >> in front of countries that accept << Le >> and << Un >> as articles. These countries are generally those that are not ended with << e >> like le Nigeria, le Togo, le Japon, etc.
Here is the,
Syntax: au + Masculine country
Ex : Je suis au Danemark = I am in Danemark
Je vais au Mexique = I am going to Mexico
Il est basé au Togo = He is based in Togo
Nous
3. The << Aux >> Preposition For Countries With Plural Names
You use the << aux >> prepositions for countries with plural names like Les Etats Unis d’Amérique, Les Pays Bas, les Seychelles, les Emirats Arabes Unis, les Emirats Arabes Unis, les Philippines, les îles Féroé etc
Ex: J’habite aux Etat Unis = I live in the US
Remi travaille aux Seychelles
Papa va aux Emirats Arabes Unis
The << De >> Prepositions means from
<< De >> means from and we use it to express the origin of something.
Ex: L’avion viens de Berlin. = The plane is coming from Berlin
Mes amis sont de Paris = My friends are from Paris
I know what you are thinking,
French Prepositions Of Place: What Are They?
French prepositions of place include à, au, du, de, dans, sur etc. The prepositions “à and de” are probably the most common in French.
1. The << à >> preposition means in, at, to etc.
We use the << à >> preposition of place in French in front of a city, town, or state under a federal republic.
Ex: J’habite à New York = I live in New York
Ma fille travaille à Paris = My daughter works in Paris. For you to use the << à >> preposition in front of a particular place in a town, the location’s gender must be feminine like La Poste, La Pharmacie, etc
Ex: Je suis à la poste = I am at the post office.
Je vais à la pharmacie = I am going to the Pharmacy
2. The << De >> Prepositions becomes
- Du when it refers to a location in a city that is masculine (le restaurant, le cinéma, etc). Du means “de le”, but we never say “de le” in French. We replace it by DU
Ex: Je viens du restaurant = I am coming from the restaurant (because restaurant is masculine)
- de la when it refers to a location in a city that is feminine (la mosquée, la rivière, la maison)
Ex: Je viens de la pharmacie = I am coming from the pharmacy
- De L’ when it refers to a place with a vowel initial (Here it does not matter whether it is masculine or feminine)
Ex: Je viens de l’église = I am coming from church (Eglise is feminine)
3. The << Dans >> Preposition
We use << Dans >> to say that something / someone is inside a place
Syntax: Dans + Article + Place
Ex: Je suis dans le salon = I am in the sitting room. However, don’t say “Je suis dans le Canada” to say “I am in Canada”. I am in Canada is ” je suis au Canada”
Issiak est dans la chambre = Issiak is inside the room
Paul est dans le supermarché = Paul is inside the supermarket
4. The << Sur >> preposition
We use Sur to say that something or someone is on top of or on the surface of something else
Syntax: sur + article + Place
Ex: J’ai mis le manteau sur la chaise = I put the jacket on the chair
Je pose le roman sur l’étagère = I put the novel on the shelves
5. The << Chez >> prepositions
We use the Chez french preposition to say that someone/something is at someone else’ house
Syntax = chez + A noun / name
Ex : Je suis chez Jean = I am at John’s place
Paul est chez ses amis = Paul is at his friend’s place
Nous sommes chez nous = We are at home
6. The << Contre >> Prepositions to say against
Syntax = contre + article + noun
Ex: J’ai placé le lit contre le mur = I placed the bed against the wall
Conclusion
To master the French prepositions well, you need to know their meanings in English and practice them over and over again. Also, it is required that you know the gender of the place you are referring to first, if not, you will end up using the wrong preposition.