What does à mean in French?

To, at, or in, depending on context. It marks a destination (je vais à Paris), a location (je suis à Paris), a time (à midi), and the person receiving something (je parle à Marie). It also appears in manner phrases like à pied.

When does à become au or aux?

À contracts with the masculine article le into au and with the plural les into aux. It doesn't contract with la or l', so you get à la gare and à l'école unchanged.

Do I use à or en for countries?

Neither à nor a fixed rule: it depends on the country's gender. Feminine countries and those starting with a vowel take en (en France, en Italie), masculine ones take au (au Japon), and plurals take aux (aux États-Unis). À is reserved for cities.

What's the difference between une tasse à café and une tasse de café?

À describes purpose and de describes contents. Une tasse à café is an empty coffee cup, the kind you'd buy in a shop; une tasse de café is a cup with coffee in it. The same contrast gives verre à vin and verre de vin.

Which verbs take à before an infinitive?

Commencer, apprendre, réussir, hésiter, continuer, arriver, and chercher, among others. The parallel de group includes essayer, oublier, décider, and refuser. Membership is fixed per verb, so these are best learned as whole phrases.

French grammar · Beginner

À as a Preposition in French: To, At, In

Written by Camille Laurent, Lead French Curriculum Editor · Reviewed May 2026

À means to, at, or in. It marks destination (je vais à Paris), location (je suis à Paris), time (à midi), and the indirect object of a verb (je parle à Marie). It contracts with le and les into au and aux.

Je vais à la gare à huit heures.

I'm going to the station at eight o'clock.

What it is

À points towards something: a place you're heading, a place you are, a time on the clock, or a person receiving something. French uses the same word for to and at, so à Paris covers both going there and being there.

Je vais à Lyon. J'habite à Lyon. Le train part à midi. — I'm going to Lyon. I live in Lyon. The train leaves at noon.

How to spot it

Watch for the contractions. À never sits next to le or les; it merges with them into au and aux.

au cinéma — to / at the cinema (à + le)
aux enfants — to the children (à + les)
à la plage — to / at the beach (no contraction)
à l'école — to / at school (no contraction)

Unlike English, French doesn't distinguish to from at with cities. Je vais à Paris and je suis à Paris use the same preposition.

À (Preposition) Quick Reference

What à marks

Use	English	Example
Destination	to	Je vais au marché.
Location	at, in	Je suis à la maison.
Clock time	at	à huit heures — at eight
Indirect object	to	Je parle à Marie.
Purpose of an object	for	une tasse à café — a coffee cup
Distance	away	à dix kilomètres — ten km away
Manner or means	by, with	à pied, à la main — on foot, by hand
Price	at, for	à deux euros — for two euros

Common À (Preposition) Examples in French

À across its main uses:

Places: Going and Being

Je vais à Paris.: I'm going to Paris.
Elle travaille au bureau.: She works at the office.
On se retrouve à la gare.: We'll meet at the station.
Il est aux États-Unis.: He's in the United States.

Cities take à. Countries take en, au, or aux depending on gender: en France, au Japon, aux Pays-Bas.

Time

à midi: at noon
à trois heures et demie: at half past three
à Noël: at Christmas
du lundi au vendredi: from Monday to Friday

For months and seasons, French switches to en: en mai, en été. But au printemps is the exception.

The Person on the Receiving End

Je donne le livre à Paul.: I'm giving the book to Paul.
Elle écrit à sa mère.: She's writing to her mother.
Ça appartient à mon frère.: That belongs to my brother.
Dis-le à tout le monde.: Tell everyone.

This is what lui and leur replace: je parle à Marie becomes je lui parle.

How À Behaves

The contractions are mandatory, and the rest is a matter of which use you're in.

À + Le Is Au, À + Les Is Aux

Two of the four combinations contract. À + la and à + l' stay separate, because there's no vowel clash to avoid.

au restaurant, aux musées, à la piscine, à l'hôtel

to the restaurant, to the museums, to the pool, to the hotel

au / aux / à la / à l'.

Cities Take À, Countries Don't

For a city, à covers both to and at. For a country, the preposition depends on gender: en for feminine, au for masculine, aux for plural.

à Tokyo, mais au Japon

in Tokyo, but in Japan

City → à. Country → en / au / aux.

À Marks the Indirect Object

When a verb has both a thing and a person, the person is introduced by à. This is the structure that indirect object pronouns replace.

J'ai envoyé un message à Sophie.

I sent a message to Sophie.

verb + thing + à + person.

À Gives an Object's Purpose

With two nouns, à says what the first is for, while de says what it contains. Une tasse à café is a coffee cup; une tasse de café is a cup of coffee.

un verre à vin, un verre de vin

a wine glass, a glass of wine

à = purpose, de = contents.

Common Mistakes with À (Preposition)

Incorrect: Je vais à le cinéma. — I'm going to the cinema.

Correct: Je vais au cinéma. — I'm going to the cinema.

À and le must contract into au. The sequence à le never appears in correct French.

Incorrect: Je téléphone mon ami. — I'm phoning my friend.

Correct: Je téléphone à mon ami. — I'm phoning my friend.

Téléphoner takes à before the person. English drops the preposition here, which is why the error is so common.

Incorrect: Je vais à France. — I'm going to France.

Correct: Je vais en France. — I'm going to France.

À works for cities, not countries. Feminine countries take en, masculine ones take au, and plurals take aux.

Verbs and Expressions Built on À

Beyond place and time, à is the required complement of a large group of verbs and a set of everyday phrases.

Verbs taking à before an infinitive

A fixed group, parallel to the de group. There's no meaning-based way to predict membership.

commencer à parler: to start speaking
apprendre à nager: to learn to swim
réussir à comprendre: to manage to understand
hésiter à répondre: to hesitate to answer

Continuer accepts both à and de, one of the very few verbs that does.

Verbs taking à before a person

These take a direct object for the thing and à for the person, which is why they pair with lui and leur.

téléphoner à un ami: to phone a friend
répondre à la question: to answer the question
penser à quelqu'un: to think about someone
plaire à tout le monde: to please everyone

Téléphoner à catches English speakers out, since English phone takes a direct object.

Manner and means

À plus a bare noun describes how something is done.

à pied: on foot
à la main: by hand
à vélo: by bike
à voix basse: in a low voice

Transport you sit inside takes en instead: en voiture, en train, en avion.

À (Preposition) FAQs

What does à mean in French?: To, at, or in, depending on context. It marks a destination (je vais à Paris), a location (je suis à Paris), a time (à midi), and the person receiving something (je parle à Marie). It also appears in manner phrases like à pied.
When does à become au or aux?: À contracts with the masculine article le into au and with the plural les into aux. It doesn't contract with la or l', so you get à la gare and à l'école unchanged.
Do I use à or en for countries?: Neither à nor a fixed rule: it depends on the country's gender. Feminine countries and those starting with a vowel take en (en France, en Italie), masculine ones take au (au Japon), and plurals take aux (aux États-Unis). À is reserved for cities.
What's the difference between une tasse à café and une tasse de café?: À describes purpose and de describes contents. Une tasse à café is an empty coffee cup, the kind you'd buy in a shop; une tasse de café is a cup with coffee in it. The same contrast gives verre à vin and verre de vin.
Which verbs take à before an infinitive?: Commencer, apprendre, réussir, hésiter, continuer, arriver, and chercher, among others. The parallel de group includes essayer, oublier, décider, and refuser. Membership is fixed per verb, so these are best learned as whole phrases.