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The top 4 trickiest things about learning French prepositions…explained!

By: Céline Bateman-Paris Fri Aug 30 2024
French
Prepositions

There are four elements to learning French prepositions that are often a challenge for English speakers: how to express "about" in French, how to express "by" in French, when not to use a preposition in French, and how to use prepositions in French idioms. For instance, have you ever wondered why French people say en voiture(by car) but à vélo(by bicycle)? Or have you been puzzled trying to express “about” in different contexts?

Il parle d’un film d’amour.

He’s talking about a romantic comedy.

C’est un livre sur le siècle des Lumières.

It’s a book about the Enlightenment.

Learning prepositions can be daunting because sometimes the only way to master them is to memorize their use. This is the case for the combination of verbs with the prepositions de or à . Another way is to study them by theme: two major categories are prepositions of time and prepositions of place.

In this article, you will find out about the variety of prepositions used to express “about” and “by” in French, learn French verbs which don’t need a preposition (even though they do in English!), and read about useful rules and idioms that will help you speak French fluently.

Table of Contents

    What’s French for “about”?

    When translating “about” into French, there’s not just one easy rule to follow. The French translation of “about” depends on the context and the verb used in the sentence. Therefore, it is important to look at the whole context of the sentence when making your translation.

    When to use ‘s’agir de’ (to be about)?

    When you want to say what something “is about,” use the impersonal verb s’agir de, which is only conjugated with the impersonal pronoun il as its subject. Its equivalent in English is “to deal with” or “to be about.”

    Il s’agit des années 1920.

    This is about the 1920’s.

    Tip

    This is how you would ask what something is about using s’agir de:

    De quoi s’agit-il ? /
    Il s’agit-il a quoi ? (informal)

    What is it about?

    When to use ‘au sujet de’ and ‘à propos de’?

    When “about” introduces the topic of something, it can be translated as au sujet de or à propos de, which both literally mean “on the topic of.” They can be used after both verbs and nouns.

    Je téléphone à propos de ma dernière commande.

    I’m calling about my last order.

    ↳ after a verb: téléphone

    Je lis un roman au sujet de l’amitié.

    I’m reading a novel about friendship.

    ↳ after a noun: roman
    Tip

    This is how you would ask what something is about using au sujet / à propos (de):

    C’est à quel sujet / propos ?

    What is it about?

    lit. (lit.) It is on what topic?

    Important

    When the preposition de is followed by the definite articles le and les, it turns into du and des.

    L’émission est au sujet du festival de Cannes.

    The program is about the Festival de Cannes.

    When to use the preposition ‘sur’?

    Another way of expressing “about” is to use the preposition sur(on), which can be used after nouns. It is perhaps less formal and used more when speaking.

    Nous avons regardé un documentaire sur l’écologie.

    We watched a documentary about ecology.

    ↳ sur follows a noun: documentaire
    Tip

    This is how you would ask what something is about using sur:

    C’est sur quoi ?

    What is this about?

    lit. (lit.) What is this on?

    When to use the preposition ‘de’?

    The French preposition de introduces a topic when it comes after certain prepositional verbs like parler de(to talk about) or discuter de(to discuss). These verbs need to be memorized. Below are a couple examples, but check out our list of French verbs followed by de.

    Ils discutent des vacances.

    They are talking about the holidays.

    ↳ des = de + les

    Elle parle de son chiot.

    She’s talking about her puppy.

    Important

    Sometimes, de introduces a noun directly, but sometimes, de is followed by the articles le and les, turning into du and des. But can you tell why?

    (1). Ils discutent de vacances.

    vs.

    (2). Ils discutent des vacances.

    In the first sentence (1), they are talking about holidays in general (“about holidays”), whereas in the second one (2), they are talking about specific holidays (“about the holidays”).

    When to use ‘environ,’ ‘à peu près,’ and ‘vers’?

    When “about” introduces an approximate quantity, use environ or à peu près.

    On va inviter environ / à peu près 30 personnes.

    We are going to invite about 30 people.

    When “about” introduces an approximate time, use vers.

    Retrouvons-nous vers 19h.

    Let’s meet up at about 7 pm.

    When to use ‘et si’ + imperfect (what about + verb-ing)?

    If you want to suggest doing something, you can use the expression et si followed by a subject and the imperfect tense.

    Et si on y allait à pied ?

    What about going by foot?

    You now know how to express “about” in various contexts, so it’s time to have a look at ways to express “by” in French. Let’s go!

    How to say “by” in French?

    “By” is often translated into French with par, but you are about to see that there are many more options! There are also rules you can learn to make it easier for you to know which preposition to use when.

    When to use ‘en’ or ‘à’ for methods of transportation?

    To put it simply, the preposition en is used to introduce a means of transport which you go in, whereas à introduces ways of transport you go on.

    en +
    à +

    • voiture

      car

    • bateau

      boat

    • bus

      bus

    • car

      coach

    • pied

      foot

    • cheval

      horse

    • scooter

      motor scooter

    • moto

      motorbike

    • roller

      roller blades

    For example:

    On y va en taxi ou à vélo ?

    Should we go by cab or bicycle?

    Important

    Watch out for these common mistakes I have heard in my classroom!

    • “He is on a plane.”

      ❌ Il est sur l’avion.

      ✅ ... dans l'avion.

      ↳ While James Bond can literally be on top of a plane (sur l’avion), people like me would be inside a plane (dans l’avion) instead.

    • “… by air” (for sending letter, for instance)

      ❌ … par air

      ✅ ... par avion

    How to use ‘d’ici’ and ‘avant’ for time?

    The French preposition d’ici is used to introduce a deadline. D’ici can be followed by the preposition à, but the à is usually omitted when introducing time. D’ici (à) can also be replaced by the prepositions avant(before) or pour(for).

    Je dois finir ce projet d’ici (à)/ avant / pour la fin du mois.

    I must finish this project by the end of the month.

    Important

    Watch out for this common mistake I have heard in my classroom!

    • “It has to be done by Tuesday.”

      ❌ Il faut le faire par mardi.

      ✅ Il faut le faire d’ici mardi.

    How to use the gerund to express “by verb-ing”?

    A French gerund, which is the preposition en followed by the present participle, can be used to introduce how something can or will happen.

    J’apprends l’espagnol en écoutant des podcasts.

    I’m learning Spanish by listening to podcasts.

    Tu vas te faire mal en faisant ça !

    You are going to hurt yourself by doing this!

    Important

    Watch out for this common mistake I have heard in my classroom!

    By playing sports, you can stay healthy.

    ❌ Par faire du sport, on reste en bonne santé.

    ✅ En faisant du sport, on reste en bonne santé.

    How to use ‘selon’ and ‘pour’ to give an opinion?

    The prepositions selon(according to) and pour(as for) are used to introduce a personal opinion in French. They are followed by a name or a stressed pronoun.

    Pour / Selon moi, ça va.

    It’s fine by me.

    How to use ‘par’ in the passive voice?

    “By” can be translated as par when it introduces an agent in the French pasive voice. The agent is the person or thing who does the action.

    Les sauces sont faites par le cuisinier.

    The sauces are made by the chef.

    Exception!

    While par is used after a verb to introduce the person doing the action, de is used after a noun to introduce that noun’s creator.

    Les films de Klapisch sont géniaux.

    Films by Klapisch are brilliant.

    If we’re using a past participle to describe a noun, however, we still use par:

    Les films réalisés par Klapisch sont géniaux.

    Films (that are) directed by Klapisch are brilliant.

    How to use ‘par’ + measurements?

    Par can also be used when giving measurements, and comes between a length measurement and a width measurement.

    Un terrain de basket fait 15 m de long par 11 m de large.

    A basketball court measures 15 m long by (and) 11 m wide.

    Une feuille A4 fait 210 mm par 297.

    An A4 sheet is 210 by 297 mm.

    How to use ‘tout seul’ to express “by myself”?

    If you want to say you have done something “by yourself” in French, you need to say you have done it “all alone.” The phrase tout seul(all alone) is composed of the adverb tout(all, completely) and the adjective seul(alone). The adjective agrees in gender and number with the subject and, exceptionally, tout also agrees in gender and number whenever seul is feminine to make it sound different from the masculine phrase.

    Masculine forms
    Feminine forms
    Singular

    tout seul

    /too seuhl/

    toute seule

    /toot seuhl/

    Plural

    tout seuls

    /too seuhl/

    toutes seules

    /toot seuhl/

    Les enfants ont fait un gâteau tout seuls.

    The children made a cake by themselves.

    Ma cousine a voyagé au Pérou toute seule.

    My cousin traveled to Peru by herself.

    You have seen what the French equivalents of the prepositions “about” and “by” are. Let’s now learn French verbs which don’t need a preposition but do in English. Feeling puzzled? Read below!

    Which verbs do not need a preposition in French?

    Some verbs that are always followed by a preposition in English (e.g. “go up” or “take off”) don’t need a preposition when you translate them into French. Often generic verbs in English like “to go” have a different meaning depending on the preposition that follows (up, down, off, about, etc.). But in French, we often use a unique verb to express each of these meanings. We particularly have a lot of French verbs for expressing directional motion (e.g. “to go” + “up/down/around/etc…”), but other verbs, such as “to step in,” do this as well! Let’s have a look at a handful of these verbs:

    monter

    to go up

    revenir, retourner

    to go back

    enlever, décoller

    to take off

    chercher

    to look for

    se calmer

    to calm down

    intervenir

    to calm down

    continuer

    to carry on

    For example:

    Monte l’escalier lentement.

    Go up the stairs slowly.

    Enlève ton manteau, il fait trop chaud !

    Take off your coat, it’s too hot!

    Important

    Watch out for this common mistake I have heard in my classroom! The preposition is contained in the verb!

    “I’m looking for my keys”:

    ❌ Je cherche pour mes clés.

    ✅ Je cherche mes clés.

    Think: "I am seeking my keys."
    → More examples of verbs which don’t need a preposition in French but do in English!

    One last thing before you can head to the tricky French prepositions activities: French idioms!

    What are the French idioms using prepositions?

    Now, let’s have a look at some common French idioms which contain prepositions. Some may be identical to English phrases, others may differ and feel counterintuitive, so it is important to memorize them!

    Idioms with par

    par exemple

    for instance

    par personne

    per person

    deux par deux

    two-by-two (in pairs)

    ↳The deux par deux structure works with other numbers too!

    par hasard

    randomly

    de par + noun

    through, due to [noun]

    par là

    this way

    For example:

    Ça fera 120 € par personne.

    This comes to €120 per person.

    De par sa volonté, elle a réussi.

    Due to her willpower, she succeeded.

    Important

    Watch out for this common mistake I have heard in my classroom!

    For example:

    ❌ Pour exemple.

    ✅ Par exemple.

    Idioms with pour

    le pour et le contre

    pros and cons

    jour pour jour

    to the day

    et pour cause

    rightfully so

    œil pour œil, dent pour dent

    an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth

    For example:

    Il a été félicité et pour cause !

    He was praised, rightfully so!

    Ils ont le même âge jour pour jour.

    They are the same age, to the day.

    ‘Bref’: What to remember about confusing French prepositions!

    When trying to choose the proper preposition in French, keep what we’ve reviewed today in mind:

    • Par is not always used to express “by.” The most common use of par is to introduce who’s done something in the passive voice.

    • Au sujet de and sur are used to introduce topics; environ + quantities, vers + time.

    • En + transport you go in, à + transport you go on.

    • The equivalents of English prepositions need to be memorized in context!

    I hope you have learned plenty of new rules and idioms which will make you sound fluent in French. Now, you are ready to head over to our tricky French prepositions activities!

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