Today’s lesson compares two very similarly sounding prepositions: avant vs. devant, meaning before and in front of. Avant comes from ante in Latin and devant simply combines the Modern French de (from or of) and avant (before).
avant, devant
before, in front of
Avant vs. Devant (before vs. in front of)
Example sentences
This first sentence uses arriver (to arrive), which uses the auxiliary verb être (to be) when conjugated in the passé composé.
Nous sommes arrivées en France avant Noël.
We arrived in France before Christmas.
In the figurative sense, passer avant means “to come before” as in prioritizing or assigning importance.
Ma femme est mes enfants passent avant ma carrière.
My wife and kids come before my career.
This final sentence uses devant, meaning physically in front of. Another adjective which we could have used for parked is stationné.
La voiture est garée devant la maison.
The car is parked in front of the house.
Related lessons
References
- fr.wiktionary.org (avant)
- fr.wiktionary.org (devant)
Word of the Day archive | Lessons by David Issokson
