DE – D’ – DE LA – DE L’ – DU – DES
When to use the different forms of the French preposition DE and partitive articles
The French preposition DE and partitive articles can be confusing, so in this lesson we are going to look at four specific ways to use them. Having some good grammar rules can be helpful! You can download a free PDF of this lesson guide in my private French Grammar Library.
Partitive articles refer to unspecified quantities of food, drinks, or anything else that you can’t really count. We don’t even need to use them sometimes in English, though you could translate “de” to mean “some” or “any”.
| de | la | tarte | some pie (FS) |
| de | l’ | eau | some water (FS) |
| de | l’ | agneau | some lamb (MS) |
| du | pain | some bread (MS) | |
| des | sacs | some bags (MP) | |
| des | lampes | some lamps (FP) |
Change UN – UNE – DE LA – DE L’ – DU – DES to DE or D’.
| J’ai DES soeurs. (FP) | Je n’ai pas DE soeur. |
| I have (some) sisters. | I don’t have (any) sisters. |
| Il a toujours DES devoirs. (MP) | Il n’a jamais DE devoirs. |
| He always has (some) homework. | He never has (any) homework. |
| Il y a encore DU lait. (MS) | Il n’y a plus DE lait. |
| There is still (some) milk. | There is no milk left. |
| Nous avons DE LA chance. (FS) | Nous n’avons pas DE chance. |
| We are lucky. | We are not lucky. |
| Vous avez encore DE L’huile. (FS) | Vous n’avez plus D’huile. |
| You still have (some) oil. | You are out of oil. |
| Il y a toujours DE L’eau dans le frigo. | Il n’y a jamais D’eau dans le frigo. |
| There is always (some) water in the fridge. | There is never (any) water in the fridge. |
Use “de” or “d’” after any expression of quantity, even if the noun which follows is plural. Think of “de” as meaning “of” in English.
| a lot | beaucoup de | J’ai beaucoup d’amis. |
| enough | assez de | Tu as assez d’argent? |
| how many / much | combien de | Il veut combien de fromage? |
| quite a bit | pas mal de | Nous avons pas mal de travail. |
| few / little | peu de | Vous avez peu de temps. |
| too much | trop de | Ils ont trop de devoirs. |
| a can / tin of | une boîte de | J’achète une boîte de maïs. |
| a cup of | une tasse de | Tu bois une tasse de café. |
| a dozen of | une douzaine de | Elle mange une douzaine de carottes. |
| a kilo of | un kilo de | Nous voudrions un kilo de viande. |
BAGS adjectives: Beauty, Age, Goodness, Size
When plural adjectives fall into the category of those that precede nouns, DES becomes DE or D’.
| Ce sont DE belles voitures. | These are (some) beautiful cars. |
| Ce sont DE beaux gâteaux. | These are (some) beautiful cakes. |
| Ce sont DE vieilles pierres. | These are (some) old stones. |
Scroll down to watch my video lesson on the French preposition DE and partitive articles
Some verbs require “de”, others require “à”, and some verbs do not require prepositions when followed by infinitives. The following is not a complete list, but it includes some of the most commonly used verbs.
| arrêter de + infinitive | J’arrête de parler. | I’ll stop talking. |
| avoir besoin de + infinitive | Tu as besoin d’apprendre ces verbes. | You need to learn these verbs. |
| avoir peur de + infinitive | Mon frère a peur de prendre l’avion. | My brother is afraid of flying. |
| se charger de + infinitive | Nous nous chargeons de préparer la fête. | We’re taking care of preparing the party. |
| choisir de + infinitive | Vous choisissez de rester chez vous. | You choose to stayhome. |
| décider de + infinitive | Ils décident de faire une présentation. | They decide to make a presentation. |
| demander de + infinitive | Je demande desortir. | I’m asking to go out. |
| se dépêcher de + infinitive | Tu te dépêches de te préparer. | You are hurrying to get ready. |
| dire de + infinitive | Elle ne dit pas de lire le livre en entier. | She is not saying to read the whole book. |
| essayer de +infinitive | Nous essayons de te comprendre. | We are trying to understand you. |
| finir de +infinitive | Elles finissent d’écrire l’exercice. | They finish writing the exercise. |
| offrir de +infinitive | J’offre d’apporter leurs bagages. | I’m offering to bring their luggage. |
| oublier de +infinitive | Tu as oublié de faire tes devoirs. | You forgot to do your homework. |
| permettre de +infinitive | Il me permet d’accélerer. | It allows me to speed up. |
| promettre de +infinitive | Nous promettons de ranger notre chambre. | We promise to clean up our room. |
| risquer de +infinitive | Vous risquez de tout perdre. | You risk losing everything. |
