French Prepositions: Simple and Complex Form

12/02/2025 Learning & Grammar created by Sprachcaffe Team

Translation, usage, and explanation of simple and complex prepositions in French | Understanding simple and complex French prepositions is essential for building clear, meaningful sentences. When learning a new language like French, many learners begin by memorizing basic vocabulary and common verbs. While this is helpful, it isn’t enough to express complete thoughts. To connect ideas, show relationships between words, and structure your sentences correctly, you must also master French prepositions.

In this guide, we explore everything you need to know about these important grammar elements — from definitions to usage, examples, translations, and differences between simple and complex prepositions in French. By the end, you’ll understand how these small but powerful words function and how to use them confidently in your everyday French.

Practise your French Prepositions Part 1 -"à, en, au, aux, chez"

Simple Prepositions in French

French prepositions are short linking words that show how the parts of a sentence relate: place, time, cause, means, possession. They look simple, but they rarely map one-to-one onto English, so they are worth learning as part of the phrases they appear in. This guide from SPRACHCAFFE covers the main simple prepositions, the special case of chez, the contracted forms (au, du, aux, des), and gives you an exercise with answers.

The simple prepositions

The most common simple prepositions in French are à, de, en, pour, par, avec, sans, chez, dans, sur, sous.

Preposition	Usual English	Example
à	to, at, in	à 7 heures (at 7 o'clock)
de	of, from	Je viens de Rome (I come from Rome)
en	in, to, by	une chemise en coton (a cotton shirt); en France (to/in France)
pour	for, in order to	Je le fais pour toi (I do it for you)
par	by, through	Je passe par le parc (I go through the park)
avec	with	avec ma mère (with my mother)
sans	without	un café sans sucre (a coffee without sugar)
chez	at the home/place of	chez moi (at my place)
dans	in, inside	dans la boîte (in the box)
sur	on, on top of	sur la table (on the table)
sous	under	sous la table (under the table)

depuis and dans with time

Two prepositions often confuse learners because both touch on time:

depuis means "since" or "for" and marks an action that started in the past and continues: J'attends depuis trois heures. → I've been waiting for three hours.
dans with a time expression means "in" (after a period): Je serai à la maison dans trois heures. → I'll be home in three hours.

France

Nice

Learn French in the heart of the French Riviera—where language meets sunshine, culture, and coastal charm.

The preposition à

À is one of the most French of all prepositions. It is used to give:

Time: à deux heures → at two o'clock.
Location (where you are): à la maison → at home.
Direction (where you go): On va à la montagne ! → We're going to the mountains!
Possession: Ce stylo est à François. → This pen is François's.
The function of an object: une machine à laver → a washing machine.

À also appears in many fixed phrases where English uses a different word: à temps (in time), à genoux (on one's knees), à vélo (by bike), à l'avenir (in future), à même de (able to), par cœur (by heart).

The preposition de

De is extremely common because it covers both "of" and "from":

Origin: Sara vient de Gênes. → Sara comes from Genoa.
The author of a work: le dernier film de Banksy → Banksy's latest film.
Belonging/specification: C'est le déjeuner de Ben. → It's Ben's lunch.
Manner: Il parle d'une voix douce. → He speaks in a soft voice. (Before a vowel, de becomes d'.)

De also follows the pattern il est + adjective + de + infinitive: Il est interdit de marcher sur l'herbe. → It is forbidden to walk on the grass.

pour or par?

Both can translate "for" or "by", so keep the roles separate:

pour = purpose, destination, or reason: Nous partons pour Madrid (we're leaving for Madrid); Il a écrit une lettre pour s'excuser (he wrote a letter to apologise).
par = passage through, agent, or means: On passe par la plage (we go via the beach); Cette chanson a été écrite par ma mère (this song was written by my mother); par email (by email).

chez: a preposition English doesn't have

Chez means "at the home or place of" and is followed by a person or profession:

chez moi → at my place
chez le médecin → at the doctor's
chez le coiffeur → at the hairdresser's
Ils viennent chez nous ce soir. → They're coming to our place tonight.

Contracted prepositions (articles contractés)

When à or de meets the definite articles le and les, they contract. With la and l', there is no contraction.

	Masculine (le)	Feminine (la)	Before vowel (l')	Plural (les)
à	au (à + le)	à la	à l'	aux (à + les)
de	du (de + le)	de la	de l'	des (de + les)

Examples: Je vais au cinéma (I'm going to the cinema); Je suis à la gare (I'm at the station); Je pars à l'étranger (I'm going abroad); Avez-vous parlé aux enfants ? (Did you talk to the children?); Ce livre vient du collège (this book comes from the school); C'est la veste de la dame (it's the lady's jacket); Je t'ai acheté des fleurs (I bought you some flowers).