Level: A2 (Upper Beginner)
See also:
👉Par (by, through, per) Word of the Day lesson »
👉Depuis (since, for) Word of the Day lesson »
🎧 Audio by Marie Assel Cambier, a native speaker & professional voice artist from France
Today’s French Word of the Day is pour — a handy little preposition that means for and sometimes in order to. It’s surprisingly versatile, and below you’ll discover ten different ways to use it.
✅ Meaning
✅ Pronunciation
✅ Example sentences
✅ More usages
✅ Related lessons
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📘 Pour meaning
Pour is a common French preposition, usually meaning “for.” It can also mean “in order to.” Use it for purpose (pour apprendre — to learn), a recipient (C’est pour toi — It’s for you), a destination (Je pars pour Marseille — I’m leaving for Marseille), or a price/exchange (pour dix euros — for ten euros).
🎧 Pour pronunciation
Pour is pronounced /puʁ/ in IPA, roughly “poor.”
📝 French and English examples
Pour – for
Pour + infinitive = “for / in order to”
Je travaille pour atteindre mes objectifs.
I work to achieve my goals.
Pour + person
Cette bague est pour toi !
This ring is for you!
Pour + place
Je pars pour Marseille demain.
I’m leaving for Marseille tomorrow.
👉 See also: Partir conjugation chart (to leave) »
Pour + moi (opinion)
Pour moi, ce film est nul !
For me, this movie is awful!
Pour + price
J’ai acheté la voiture pour huit mille euros.
I bought the car for eight thousand euros.
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⚠️ Pour vs pendant – be careful!
Students often confuse pour and pendant when expressing “for x amount of time” in the past. Use pendant for past duration, not pour.
✅ J’ai étudié le chinois pendant trois ans avant d’aller à Taïwan.
I studied Chinese for three years before going to Taiwan.
❌ J’ai étudié le chinois pour trois ans avant d’aller à Taïwan.
I studied Chinese for three years before going to Taiwan.
👀 More usages of pour
- Planned or future duration
Je suis ici pour deux semaines.
I’m here for two weeks. - To show a role/employer
Il travaille pour une grande entreprise.
He works for a big company. - On someone’s behalf
Je parle pour tout le groupe.
I’m speaking on behalf of the group. - For + noun
Merci pour votre aide.
Thanks for your help. - For an exchange
J’échange mon sandwich pour ton gâteau.
I’m exchanging my sandwich for your cake.
🚀 Expand your French vocabulary!
Now that you’ve mastered pour, check out my lessons covering pendant (during/for) and pour que (so that/in order that).
👉 Learn pendant here »
👉 Learn pour que here »
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