French Prepositions Explained: À, De, En, Dans, Chez, Pour, and Par

French prepositions are small words that connect different parts of a sentence. They can show place, direction, time, origin, purpose, or method.

Some of the most common French prepositions are à, de, en, dans, chez, pour, and par. They are used in many everyday sentences, but they can be confusing for beginners because one French preposition can have several English meanings.

This guide explains the most common uses of these French prepositions with simple rules and examples.

What Are Prepositions in French?

A preposition is a word that connects one part of a sentence to another. It often gives information about place, direction, time, purpose, or method.

Some common French prepositions include:

• à – to, at, in
• de – from, of
• en – in, to, by
• dans – in, inside
• chez – at someone's home or place
• pour – for, in order to
• par – by, through, per

The English meaning can change depending on the sentence, so it is better to learn how each preposition is used rather than memorising one translation.

À — To, At, or In

The French word à can mean to, at, or in. It is often used when talking about places, directions, times, and people.

À for Places and Cities

Use à with most city names when saying where someone is or where they are going.

• Je suis à Paris. — I am in Paris.
• Elle habite à Lyon. — She lives in Lyon.
• Nous allons à Marseille. — We are going to Marseille.

À for Direction

Use à when someone is going to a place.

• Je vais à l'école. — I am going to school.
• Il va à la gare. — He is going to the train station.
• Elle va à la banque. — She is going to the bank.

À for Time

Use à to say the exact time something happens.

• Le cours commence à 9 heures. — The class starts at 9 o'clock.
• Je me lève à 7 heures. — I get up at 7 o'clock.

Common Expressions with À

You will also see à in many everyday expressions:

• à pied — on foot
• à vélo — by bicycle
• à droite — on the right
• à gauche — on the left
• à la maison — at home
• à l'école — at school

À with Articles

When à comes before certain articles, they combine to make one word:

For example:

• Je vais au restaurant. — I am going to the restaurant.
• Il parle aux étudiants. — He speaks to the students.
• Elle va à la banque. — She is going to the bank.
• Je vais à l'école. — I am going to school.

À After Verbs

Many French verbs are followed by à when talking about a person.

• Je parle à Marie. — I am speaking to Marie.
• Il téléphone à son frère. — He is calling his brother.

Remember: à is commonly used for to, at, or in, especially when talking about places, time, direction, or people.

De — From, Of, or About

The French word de is a very common preposition. It can mean from, of, or about, depending on the sentence.

De for Origin

Use de to say where someone or something comes from.

• Je viens de Paris. — I come from Paris.
• Elle vient de France. — She comes from France.
• Nous revenons de l'école. — We are coming back from school.

A simple way to remember this is:

• à = going to a place
• de = coming from a place

For example:

• Je vais à Paris. — I am going to Paris.
• Je viens de Paris. — I am coming from Paris.

De for Possession or Connection

Use de to show that something belongs to someone or is connected to something.

• Le livre de Marie. — Marie's book.
• La voiture de Paul. — Paul's car.
• La porte de la maison. — The door of the house.

De for Talking About Something

Many French verbs are followed by de when saying what someone is talking about.

• Je parle de mon travail. — I am talking about my work.
• Nous parlons de musique. — We are talking about music.
• Il parle de son travail. — He is talking about his work.

De for Quantities

Use de after many words that show quantity.

• Un verre de lait. — A glass of milk.
• Une bouteille d'eau. — A bottle of water.
• Beaucoup de livres. — Many books.

De with Articles

When de comes before certain articles, the words combine:

For example:

• Je viens du Canada. — I come from Canada.
• Il parle des étudiants. — He is talking about the students.
• Elle revient de la banque. — She is coming back from the bank.
• Je bois de l'eau. — I drink water.

Remember

The easiest way to remember the basic difference is:

à = to / at / in
de = from / of / about

• Je vais à Paris. — I am going to Paris.
• Je viens de Paris. — I am coming from Paris.

En and Dans: What Is the Difference?

Both en and dans can mean in, which makes them confusing for beginners. However, they are not always used in the same way.

En — in, by, or during

En is commonly used with countries, time periods, seasons, transport, and certain materials.

En with Countries

Use en with many feminine country names and with countries whose names begin with a vowel.

• Je vais en France. — I am going to France.
• Elle habite en Espagne. — She lives in Spain.
• J'habite en Italie. — I live in Italy.

En with Continents

Use en with the names of continents.

• Il voyage en Europe. — He is travelling in Europe.
• Nous voyageons en Afrique. — We are travelling in Africa.

En with Years and Months

Use en with years and months.

• Je suis né en 2000. — I was born in 2000.
• Nous partons en juin. — We are leaving in June.

En with Seasons

Use en with most seasons.

• en été — in summer
• en hiver — in winter
• en automne — in autumn

For example:

• Il fait froid en hiver. — It is cold in winter.
• Nous voyageons en été. — We travel in summer.

En with Transport

Use en with many types of transport.

• Je vais au travail en voiture. — I go to work by car.
• Nous voyageons en train. — We travel by train.
• Elle vient en avion. — She comes by plane.

En for the Time Needed to Do Something

Use en when saying how long it takes to finish something.

• Je fais mes devoirs en une heure. — I do my homework in one hour.
• Il peut finir le travail en dix minutes. — He can finish the work in ten minutes.

Remember

en is commonly used for:

• countries and continents — en France, en Europe
• years and months — en 2000, en juin
• seasons — en été, en hiver
• transport — en voiture, en train
• the time needed to do something — en une heure

Dans — in, inside, or in a period of time

Dans is mainly used for something that is inside a place or something that will happen after a certain amount of time.

Dans for something inside a place

• Le livre est dans le sac. — The book is in the bag.
• Les enfants sont dans la maison. — The children are in the house.
• Il y a de l'eau dans le verre. — There is water in the glass.

Dans for future time

Use dans when something will happen after a certain amount of time.

• Je pars dans deux heures. — I am leaving in two hours.
• Le cours commence dans dix minutes. — The class starts in ten minutes.
• Nous reviendrons dans une semaine. — We will come back in one week.

En vs. Dans

This is a common problem for beginners.

Compare:

• Je fais mes devoirs en deux heures. — I finish my homework in two hours.
• Je commence mes devoirs dans deux heures. — I will start my homework in two hours.

En describes the time needed to do something.

Dans describes how long you have to wait before something happens.

Chez — at someone's place

Chez does not have one exact English translation. It usually means at someone's home, at someone's place, or at the place of a professional or business.

The basic pattern is:

chez + person or professional

Chez for someone's home

• Je suis chez Marie. — I am at Marie's place.
• Nous mangeons chez nos amis. — We are eating at our friends' place.
• Elle dort chez sa sœur. — She is sleeping at her sister's place.

Chez for professionals

You can also use chez when going to a professional or their place of work.

• Je vais chez le médecin. — I am going to the doctor.
• Elle va chez le dentiste. — She is going to the dentist.
• Je vais chez le coiffeur. — I am going to the hairdresser.

So, chez is often similar to saying "at someone's place" or "at the professional's place."

Pour and Par: How Are They Different?

Both pour and par can sometimes translate as for or by, but their uses are different.

Pour — For, In Order To, or For a Period

The French word pour commonly means for. It is often used to show who something is for, the purpose of an action, or a period of time.

Pour for a Person

Use pour to say who receives something or who something is meant for.

• C'est pour toi. — It is for you.
• Ce cadeau est pour Paul. — This gift is for Paul.
• J'ai une lettre pour Marie. — I have a letter for Marie.

Pour for Purpose

Use pour to explain why something is done. It can often mean to or in order to.

• J'étudie pour apprendre le français. — I study to learn French.
• Je travaille pour gagner de l'argent. — I work to earn money.
• Elle étudie pour réussir son examen. — She studies to pass her exam.

Pour for a Period of Time

Use pour to talk about a planned period of time.

• Je pars pour trois jours. — I am leaving for three days.
• Nous sommes à Paris pour une semaine. — We are in Paris for a week.
• Je pars pour deux semaines. — I am leaving for two weeks.

Pour for a Destination

Pour can also be used to show a destination, especially with travel.

• Le train part pour Lyon. — The train leaves for Lyon.
• Nous partons pour Paris. — We are leaving for Paris.

Remember

pour is commonly used for:

• a person — pour toi, pour Paul
• a purpose — pour apprendre, pour travailler
• a planned period of time — pour trois jours
• a destination — pour Lyon

Par — By, Through, or Per

The French word par commonly means by, through, or per. It is often used to talk about how something happens, who performs an action, movement through a place, or a rate.

Par for How Something Is Done

Use par to show the method or way something is done.

• Envoyez le document par email. — Send the document by email.
• Il entre par la porte. — He enters through the door.

Par for Movement Through a Place

Use par when someone travels through or passes by a place.

• Nous passons par Paris. — We are going through Paris.
• Il passe par Londres. — He is passing through London.

Par for Rates and Frequency

Use par to mean per when talking about how often something happens or a rate.

• Deux fois par semaine. — Twice a week.
• Trois euros par personne. — Three euros per person.
• Je travaille huit heures par jour. — I work eight hours per day.

Par for the Person Who Performs an Action

In passive sentences, par shows who performed the action.

• Le livre a été écrit par Victor Hugo. — The book was written by Victor Hugo.
• La chanson est chantée par une célèbre artiste. — The song is sung by a famous artist.

Common Expressions with Par

You will also see par in many everyday expressions:

• par exemple — for example
• par hasard — by chance
• par email — by email

Pour vs. Par

A useful way to remember the difference is:

• pour often shows purpose, destination, or who something is for.
• par often shows method, route, frequency, or who performed an action.

For example:

• Je travaille pour gagner de l'argent. — I work to earn money.
• Je travaille huit heures par jour. — I work eight hours per day.

Common French Preposition Mistakes

French prepositions can be confusing because the same English word may be translated in different ways. The best way to learn them is to look at how they are used in French.

À or En with Places?

Use à with cities.

• à Paris — in/to Paris
• à Londres — in/to London

Use en with many feminine countries.

• en France — in/to France
• en Italie — in/to Italy

Masculine countries usually use au.

• au Canada — in/to Canada
• au Japon — in/to Japan

Plural countries use aux.

• aux États-Unis — in/to the United States

A simple rule to remember is:

à + city
en + many feminine countries
au + masculine country
aux + plural country

En or Dans?

These two prepositions can both relate to time, but they have different meanings.

Use en to say how long something takes.

• Je finis le travail en deux heures. — I finish the work in two hours.
• Elle fait ses devoirs en une heure. — She does her homework in one hour.

Use dans to say how long it will be before something happens.

• Je pars dans deux heures. — I am leaving in two hours.
• Le cours commence dans dix minutes. — The class starts in ten minutes.

Compare:

en deux heures = it takes two hours to do something
dans deux heures = something will happen two hours from now

En or Dans for Transport?

Use dans when you mean physically inside something.

• Je suis dans la voiture. — I am inside the car.

Use en when talking about the way you travel.

• Je vais à Paris en voiture. — I am going to Paris by car.
• Nous voyageons en train. — We travel by train.

So:

dans la voiture = inside the car
en voiture = by car

Pour or Par?

These two prepositions have different meanings.

Use pour to show who or what something is intended for.

• Ce message est pour Paul. — This message is for Paul.
• Ce cadeau est pour Marie. — This gift is for Marie.

Use par to show who performed an action, especially in a passive sentence.

• Ce message a été écrit par Paul. — This message was written by Paul.
• Le livre a été écrit par Victor Hugo. — The book was written by Victor Hugo.

So:

pour Paul = intended for Paul
par Paul = done by Paul

À or Chez?

Use à for many places and cities.

• Je vais à Paris. — I am going to Paris.
• Je vais à l'école. — I am going to school.
• Je vais au restaurant. — I am going to the restaurant.

Use chez when talking about a person's home or a professional's place.

• Je vais chez Paul. — I am going to Paul's place.
• Je vais chez le médecin. — I am going to the doctor's.
• Elle est chez sa grand-mère. — She is at her grandmother's place.

A simple rule:

à = a place or city
chez = someone's home or a professional's place

De, Du, and Des

Remember that de changes when it comes before certain articles.

Examples:

• Je viens du Canada. — I come from Canada.
• Je parle des étudiants. — I am talking about the students.
• Elle revient de la banque. — She is coming back from the bank.
• Je bois de l'eau. — I drink water.

Quick Reference: French Prepositions

How to Learn French Prepositions

The easiest way to learn French prepositions is to practise them in complete sentences. This is better than trying to memorise each preposition by itself.

Start with simple and common phrases, such as:

• Je vais à Paris.
• Je viens de France.
• J'habite en France.
• Le livre est dans le sac.
• Je suis chez Marie.
• C'est pour toi.
• Deux fois par semaine.

Pay extra attention to prepositions that can be confusing, such as à and en, or en and dans. Practise using them in different sentences. Over time, you will begin to understand which preposition sounds right in each situation.

Conclusion

French prepositions like à, de, en, dans, chez, pour, and par are used in many everyday sentences. Each preposition has different uses, so beginners can learn them more easily through simple rules, examples, and common phrases.

You do not need to learn every use at once. Start with the most common patterns and practise them in short French sentences. As you read, listen to, and speak more French, choosing the right preposition will become easier and more natural.