Here and There


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Ci et là

French has two opposing families of words that indicate location:

The ci family, with meanings related to "here"
The là family, with meanings related to "there"

These base units are found in a variety of words:

adverbs of place	ici	là
prefixes	ci-	là-
suffixes	-ci	-là
demonstrative pronouns	ceci	cela (ça)
presentatives	voici	voilà

For detailed information about the grammar behind these word pairs and how to use them, click the above links. This lesson is about the difference between the two families.

The ci family of words indicate closeness: here, this one, these, etc., while the là family is about distance: there, that one, those … at least in theory.

In reality, French speakers tend to favor là regardless of the location in question.

Par exemple…

English	Literal French	Colloquial French
I’m here.	Je suis ici.	Je suis là.
Here’s your book.	Voici ton livre.	Voilà ton livre.
I don’t like this.	Je n’aime pas ceci.	Je n’aime pas cela (ça).

To make a clear distinction, use the two words together.

I’m here and he’s there.		Je suis ici et il est là.
Here’s your book and there’s mine.		Voici ton livre et voilà le mien.
I don’t like this, I prefer that.		Je n’aime pas ceci, je préfère cela.