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Prepositions and Contractions
| among |
parmi |
par-mee |
| at / to / in |
à |
ah |
| at the house of |
chez |
shay |
| between |
entre |
on-truh |
| for |
pour |
poohr |
| from / of / about |
de |
duh |
| in |
dans |
dawn |
| on |
sur |
sir |
| with |
avec |
ah-veck |
| without |
sans |
sawn |
Prepositional Contractions
| à + le = au |
oh |
at / to / in the |
| à + les = aux |
oh |
at / to / in the (pl.) |
| de + le = du |
dew |
of / from / about the |
| de + les = des |
day |
of / from / about the (pl.) |
In: Dans vs. En
Dans is used to show the time when an action will begin, while en shows the length of time an action takes.
Je pars dans quinze minutes. I'm leaving in 15 minutes.
Il peut lire ce livre en une demi-heure. He can read this book in a half hour.
With: Avec vs. De vs. A vs. Chez
Avec implies doing something or going along with someone; de is used in phrases of manner and in many idiomatic expressions; à is used when referring to someone's attributes; and chez is used to mean "as fas as (person) is concerned." To describe the way a person carries him/herself, no extra word is used.
Je vais en France avec ma sour. I'm going to France with my sister.
Elle me remercie d'un sourire. She thanks me with a smile.
L'homme aux cheveux roux est très grand. The man with the red hair is very tall.
Chez cet enfant, tout est simple. With this child, everything is simple.
Il marche, les mains dans les poches. He walks with his hands in his pockets.
Negative Sentences
To make sentences negative, simply put ne and pas around the verb. In spoken French, however, the ne is frequently omitted, but it cannot be omitted in written French. And when you are replying "yes" to a negative question, you use si and not oui.
Je suis du Canada. I am from Canada.
Je ne suis pas du Mexique. I am not from Mexico.
Je suis française. I am French (feminine.)
Je ne suis pas suisse. I am not Swiss. (masculine or feminine)
Il est australien. He is Australian.
Elle n'est pas danoise. She is not Danish.
Elles sont des Etats-Unis. They are from the United States.
Ils ne sont pas du Portugal. They are not from Portugal.
Je parle chinois et japonais. I speak Chinese and Japanese.
Je ne parle pas suèdois. I don't speak Swedish.
Vous n'êtes pas du Brésil? You aren't from Brazil?
Si, nous sommes du Brésil. Yes, we are from Brazil.
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