Published April 19, 2020 • Updated July 13, 2026 — By French teacher David Issokson, teaching French online since 2014
The French preposition à has several common English translations, including “to,” “at,” “in,” “on” and “with.” It is one of the most versatile prepositions in French, and its meaning changes depending on the word or expression that follows it. This lesson explains the most common uses of à and provides practical example sentences.
✅ Contractions with à
✅ Expressing destination: “to”
✅ Expressing location: “at” or “in”
✅ Indirect objects: “to someone”
✅ Verbs followed by à
✅ Common phrases with à
Pronunciation of à
The preposition à is pronounced /a/, approximately like “ah.”
The grave accent distinguishes the preposition à from a, the third-person singular form of the verb avoir (to have).
Il va à Paris.
He is going to Paris.
Il a une voiture.
He has a car.
Contractions with à
When à is followed by the definite articles le or les, a contraction is required.
- à + le = au
- à + les = aux
- à + la = à la
- à + l’ = à l’
Je vais au marché.
I am going to the market.
Elle parle aux étudiants.
She is speaking to the students.
Nous sommes à la gare.
We are at the train station.
Il va à l’école.
He is going to school.
Expressing destination: “to”
One of the most common uses of à is to indicate movement toward a place. It frequently follows the verb aller (to go).
Je vais à la plage.
I am going to the beach.
Nous allons au marché.
We are going to the market.
Elle va aux États-Unis.
She is going to the United States.
Ils vont à l’école.
They are going to school.
Expressing location: “at” or “in”
The preposition à can indicate where a person or thing is located.
Je suis à la maison.
I am at home.
Elle travaille à Paris.
She works in Paris.
Nous sommes au restaurant.
We are at the restaurant.
Les enfants sont à l’école.
The children are at school.
À is generally used before the names of cities.
Il habite à Lyon.
He lives in Lyon.
Nous passons une semaine à Montréal.
We are spending a week in Montreal.
Expressing time: “at”
Use à before a specific time.
Le cours commence à neuf heures.
The class starts at nine o’clock.
Nous déjeunons à midi.
We have lunch at noon.
Elle est arrivée à minuit.
She arrived at midnight.
À is not normally used before days, months or years.
Expressing distance
Use à to indicate how far one place is from another.
The usual structure is:
place + être/se trouver + à + distance + de + place
Nous habitons à trois heures de Paris.
We live three hours from Paris.
Elle habite à vingt-cinq kilomètres de Marseille.
She lives twenty-five kilometers from Marseille.
L’hôtel se trouve à cinq minutes de la gare.
The hotel is five minutes from the train station.
Indirect objects: “to someone”
Many French verbs use à before the person receiving the action.
Je parle à Marie.
I am speaking to Marie.
Il téléphone à son frère.
He is calling his brother.
Nous écrivons à nos amis.
We are writing to our friends.
Elle donne le livre à Paul.
She gives the book to Paul.
When the indirect object is replaced by a pronoun, French normally uses lui or leur.
Je parle à Marie. → Je lui parle.
I am speaking to Marie. → I am speaking to her.
Possession
The construction être à + person or stressed pronoun indicates possession or ownership.
La voiture est à Marc.
The car belongs to Marc.
Cette maison est à David.
This house belongs to David.
Le livre est à moi.
The book is mine.
Les skis sont à lui.
The skis are his.
À qui est ce sac ?
Whose bag is this?
In standard French, possession is not normally expressed by placing à directly between two nouns. For example, say le livre de Paul, not le livre à Paul.
Style or manner
The construction à la + adjective can mean “in the style of” or “in the manner of.”
Il cuisine à la française.
He cooks in the French style.
Elle prépare les légumes à l’italienne.
She prepares the vegetables Italian-style.
Un jardin à l’anglaise
An English-style garden
The adjective normally agrees with the implied feminine noun manière or façon, meaning “way”.
Future greetings and farewells
À appears in many expressions referring to the next time people will meet.
À demain !
See you tomorrow!
À plus tard !
See you later!
À tout à l’heure !
See you later today!
À lundi !
See you Monday!
À bientôt !
See you soon!
À la semaine prochaine !
See you next week!
À quinze heures !
See you at 3:00 p.m.!
Foods, flavors and ingredients
À can connect a food or drink with its flavor, main ingredient or distinguishing feature.
Une glace au chocolat
Chocolate ice cream
Un gâteau à la vanille
A vanilla cake
Une tarte aux framboises
A raspberry tart
Un thé à la menthe
Mint tea
Une soupe à l’oignon
Onion soup
The form changes according to the article:
- au chocolat
- à la vanille
- aux framboises
- à l’oignon
Clothing, accessories and physical features
À can describe someone by referring to clothing, an accessory or a physical characteristic.
L’homme au chapeau noir
The man in the black hat
La femme à la chemise bleue
The woman in the blue shirt
La fille à la jupe rose
The girl in the pink skirt
Un garçon aux yeux bleus
A boy with blue eyes
Une femme aux cheveux longs
A woman with long hair
👉 French clothing vocabulary »
Measurement, rate and price
À can express a rate, speed, price or unit of measurement.
Il roule à cinquante kilomètres à l’heure.
He is driving at fifty kilometers per hour.
Ces pommes sont vendues au kilo.
These apples are sold by the kilogram.
La voiture roule à cent kilomètres à l’heure.
The car is traveling at one hundred kilometers per hour.
Les fraises coûtent cinq euros le kilo.
The strawberries cost five euros per kilogram.
Note that French often uses le kilo, le litre or l’heure where English uses “per.”
Purpose or intended use
À can indicate what an object is used for.
Une tasse à thé
A teacup
Un bol à soupe
A soup bowl
Une assiette à dessert
A dessert plate
Une cuillère à soupe
A tablespoon
Un couteau à pain
A bread knife
Une brosse à dents
A toothbrush
Une machine à café
A coffee machine
This construction generally follows the pattern:
object + à + purpose
Modes of transportation
À is used with several forms of transportation, particularly those that a person rides, mounts or uses without sitting inside an enclosed vehicle.
aller à pied
to go on foot
aller à vélo
to go by bicycle
aller à moto
to go by motorcycle
aller à cheval
to go on horseback
The preposition en is generally used with enclosed vehicles.
aller en voiture
to go by car
aller en train
to go by train
aller en avion
to go by plane
These are fixed expressions, so it is best to learn each mode of transportation with its usual preposition.
How something is made or done
The construction à + noun can indicate the instrument, method or manner used to do something.
Un objet fait à la main
A handmade object
Écrire au stylo
To write with a pen
Dessiner au crayon
To draw with a pencil
Payer à crédit
To pay on credit
Travailler à distance
To work remotely
Expressions with nouns derived from verbs
À can appear before a possessive adjective and a noun describing an event. In English, this construction is often translated with “when.”
À mon arrivée, tout le monde dormait.
When I arrived, everyone was sleeping.
À son départ, nous étions tristes.
When he left, we were sad.
À mon retour, je t’appellerai.
When I return, I will call you.
À la fin du cours, le professeur a répondu aux questions.
At the end of the class, the teacher answered the questions.
Giving directions
Use à droite and à gauche when giving directions.
Tournez à droite.
Turn right.
Prenez la première rue à gauche.
Take the first street on the left.
La banque est à droite de la pharmacie.
The bank is to the right of the pharmacy.
Verbs followed by à
Many French verbs are followed by à + infinitive.
Je continue à étudier.
I continue studying.
Elle apprend à conduire.
She is learning to drive.
Nous cherchons à comprendre.
We are trying to understand.
Il arrive à résoudre le problème.
He manages to solve the problem.
Common verbs followed by à + infinitive include:
- aider à — to help to
- apprendre à — to learn to
- arriver à — to manage to
- chercher à — to try to
- commencer à — to begin to
- continuer à — to continue to
- hésiter à — to hesitate to
- réussir à — to succeed in
👉 French verbs followed by à »
Adjectives followed by à
Some French adjectives are also followed by à.
Ce livre est facile à lire.
This book is easy to read.
Cette règle est difficile à comprendre.
This rule is difficult to understand.
Je suis prêt à partir.
I am ready to leave.
Elle est habituée à travailler tôt.
She is used to working early.
Common phrases with à
The preposition à appears in many common French expressions.
à un moment donné — at some point
à tout prix — at all costs
à propos de — regarding, about
à la fois — at the same time
à distance — remotely, from a distance
à haute voix — aloud
à emporter — to go, takeaway
à côté de — next to
à travers — through
à cause de — because of
à mon avis — in my opinion
à mon tour — my turn
à partir de — starting from
à ce moment-là — at that moment
à ce propos — regarding that
à cette époque — at that time
à l’avance — in advance
à l’heure — on time
à la maison — at home
Common exclamations and expressions
À la tienne !
Cheers!
À votre santé !
To your health!
À tes souhaits !
Bless you!
À la poubelle !
Throw it away!
À suivre
To be continued
Au feu !
Fire!
Au fait
By the way
À propos
By the way / speaking of that
À vs. de
The prepositions à and de frequently appear as opposites.
À often indicates movement toward a place, while de indicates movement away from or origin.
Je vais à Paris.
I am going to Paris.
Je reviens de Paris.
I am coming back from Paris.
À can also indicate the recipient of an action, while de can indicate possession or origin.
Je parle à Marie.
I am speaking to Marie.
C’est le livre de Marie.
It is Marie’s book.
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