Comparaison des articles
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There are three types of French articles: definite, indefinite, and partitive, and it’s not always easy to know which one you need due to differences in article usage in French and English. Here’s a detailed comparison to help you decide.
En résumé
| singular | plural | |||||
| masc | fem | f + vowel | ||||
| definite | le | la | l’ | les | ||
| indefinite | un | une | un / une | des | ||
| partitive | du | de la | de l’ | des | ||
Singular articles
1) The definite article has two opposing meanings: it indicates either a specific item or something in general, the idea of something.
| J’ai acheté le chocolat que tu aimes bien. | I bought the (specific) chocolate you like. | |
| Tu aimes bien le chocolat. | You like chocolate (in general). |
Learn more about definite articles.
2) The singular indefinite article is the easiest of all – it refers to one of something, and is nearly always equivalent to "a," "an," or "one" in English.*
| – Est-ce que tu as un chien ? – Oui, j’ai un chien. |
– Do you have a dog? – Yes, I have a / one dog. |
|
| Il a acheté un oignon. | He bought an / one onion. |
* The only real exception is when talking about a person’s profession or another defining characteristic: Je suis médecin – I’m a doctor.
Learn more about indefinite articles.
3) The partitive refers to a part of something, often food or drink. Using it indicates that the amount is unknown or uncountable.
| J’ai acheté du chocolat. | I bought some chocolate. | |
| Tu devrais boire de l’eau. | You should drink some water. |
Learn more about partitive articles.
Plural articles
1) The plural definite article, les, has the same two opposing meanings as the singular.
| J’ai déjà lu les livres. | I’ve already read the (specific) books. | |
| Tu aimes les livres. | You like books (in general). |
Learn more about definite articles.
2) The plural indefinite article des refers to more than one of something countable and is equivalent to "some."
| Il a acheté des oignons. | He bought (some) onions. | |
| J’ai vu des chiens dans la rue. | I saw some dogs in the street. |
Learn more about indefinite articles.
3) The plural partitive article, also des, indicates an amount of something uncountable. It is also equivalent to "some."
| J’ai acheté des épinards. | I bought some spinach. | |
| Il a fait des dégâts. | He did some damage. |
Learn more about partitive articles.
Definite vs indefinite article
The difference between the French definite and indefinite article is pretty straightforward: the definite article refers to something specific, while the indefinite refers to something unspecific.
| Je vois le chien dont tu m’as parlé. Je vois les chiens …. |
I see the dog you told me about. I see the dogs …. |
|
| vs | ||
| Je vois un chien dans la rue. Je vois des chiens …. |
I see a dog in the street. I see some dogs …. |
Definite vs partitive article
The definite article references the whole of something specific or the general sense of something, while the partitive indicates a part of a whole.
| J’aime le épinards. | I like chocolate. I like spinach. | |
| &nbvs | ||
| Je mange du chocolat. Je mange i> |
I’m eating (some) chocolate. I’m eating (some) spinach. |
Indefinite vs partitive article vs partitivThe indefinite article is used for countable nouns, the partitive for uncountable / mass nouns.
| Je veux un verre d’eau. J’achète des concombres. |
I want a glass of water. I’m buying some cucumbers. |
|
| vs | ||
| Je veux de l’eau. J’achète des asperges. |
I want some water. I’m buying some asparagus. |
Un verrele> is countable, while eauntab is uncountable. You can tell by asking about the amount: "how many" means you’re dealing with a countable noun, while "how much" means it’s uncountable.
| Indefinite | Partitive | |||
| verre | how many glasses? | |||
| eau | how much water? | |||
| euros | how many euros? | |||
| argent | how much money? |
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