The preposition de links one element to a source, owner, substance, content, quantity, or dependent complement. English spreads these relations across from, of, possessive ’s, and compounds, so translating one English word at a time is unreliable. The useful question is structural: what depends on what, and what relation does de give that dependency?
Forms: de, d’, del, and dels
Before a vowel or silent h, de normally elides to d’. With the masculine definite articles el and els, it contracts to del and dels. It does not contract with la, les, or the elided article l’.
| Following form | Result | Example |
|---|---|---|
| consonant | de | de fusta |
| vowel or silent h | d’ | d’aigua, d’hivern |
| el | del | del barri |
| els | dels | dels veïns |
| la, les, l’ | no contraction | de la plaça, de les claus, de l’avi |
The apostrophe is orthographic, not optional shorthand. However, words whose initial i or u functions as a consonant do not trigger ordinary elision: de iogurt. Foreign spellings can make the boundary less predictable, so established dictionary spelling is the safe guide.
Vinc del mercat i porto una ampolla d’oli d’oliva.
I’m coming from the market and I’ve brought a bottle of olive oil.
La bicicleta de l’Arnau és davant de la porta dels veïns.
Arnau’s bicycle is in front of the neighbors’ door.
The main relations expressed by de
The following table is a decision guide. Several English translations are possible because Catalan de identifies a relation rather than a single English word.
| If the dependent phrase names… | Choose | Typical example |
|---|---|---|
| a point of origin or departure | de | tornar de Girona |
| an owner, author, or associated entity | de | el mòbil de la Núria |
| the material something consists of | de | una taula de roure |
| the content or type of a container | de | una tassa de te |
| what a measure quantifies | de | mig quilo de cireres |
| the complement selected by a word | learn that word + de | parlar de, orgullós de |
Origin and separation
With movement, de marks the source. With verbs such as sortir de, venir de, and treure de, it answers “from where?” This source use contrasts with a goal introduced by a or another directional expression.
Demà sortirem de Reus a les set i arribarem a Lleida abans de dinar.
Tomorrow we’ll leave Reus at seven and arrive in Lleida before lunch.
He tret els gots de l’armari perquè ja han arribat els convidats.
I’ve taken the glasses out of the cupboard because the guests have arrived.
For a starting point extended through time or space, Catalan also has des de; its contrast with simple de belongs on De, Des De, and D’ençà De.
Possession, authorship, and classification
Catalan has no productive equivalent of English possessive ’s. The possessor follows the possessed noun and is introduced by de. The same structure can name an author, a part-whole relation, or a class.
No trobo les ulleres de l’àvia; potser són damunt la tauleta.
I can’t find Grandma’s glasses; perhaps they’re on the bedside table.
Al club de lectura comentarem una novel·la de Mercè Rodoreda.
At the book club we’ll discuss a novel by Mercè Rodoreda.
English noun compounds often become noun + de + noun: a coffee cup may be una tassa de cafè, and the kitchen door is la porta de la cuina. But meaning matters. Una tassa de cafè normally means a cupful of coffee, whereas una tassa per al cafè is a cup intended for coffee, even if it is empty.
Material, content, and measure
Use de for composition and content: un jersei de llana, un got d’aigua. After quantities and measure nouns, de introduces what is counted or measured. English sometimes omits of, but Catalan does not.
Ens calen dos metres de tela de cotó per fer les cortines.
We need two meters of cotton fabric to make the curtains.
Posa’m una mica de pa i un tros de formatge, si us plau.
Give me a little bread and a piece of cheese, please.
The sequence can contain several nested dependencies: dos pots de mel de romaní del Priorat means “two jars [of rosemary honey [from the Priorat]].” Word order shows which noun each de phrase modifies; careless reordering can change the interpretation.
Selected complements and the pronoun en
Some verbs, adjectives, and nouns select de as part of their grammar. Common combinations include parlar de, dependre de, recordar-se de, adonar-se de, estar segur de, tenir por de, and tenir ganes de. There is no universal semantic shortcut: memorize the preposition with the word.
No ens vam adonar del canvi d’horari fins que vam arribar a l’estació.
We didn’t notice the timetable change until we arrived at the station.
Estic segura que vindrà, però encara no estic segura de l’hora.
I’m sure she’ll come, but I’m still not sure of the time.
That minimal pair shows a structural contrast. Estar segur de + noun phrase retains de; before a finite clause introduced by que, standard Catalan normally drops the preposition: estic segur que…, not estic segur de que…. The latter is a widespread Spanish-influenced error. The full pattern is treated on preposition drop before que.
A de complement can often be replaced by the weak pronoun en. Negation does not change that relationship; it merely precedes the clitic.
Parleu sovint del projecte? Sí, en parlem cada dilluns, però avui no en parlarem.
Do you often talk about the project? Yes, we talk about it every Monday, but today we won’t.
Scope, attachment, and word order
A de phrase normally attaches to the nearest plausible head, but context can create ambiguity. La foto de la Júlia amb barret may mean a photo depicting Júlia, with Júlia wearing a hat; placing or expanding constituents resolves the intended structure: Amb barret, la Júlia surt a la foto. Catalan does not normally leave the preposition stranded at the end as English does.
De la proposta que ens vas enviar divendres, el director encara no n’ha dit res.
About the proposal you sent us on Friday, the director still hasn’t said anything.
Here the de phrase is moved to the left for discourse focus, and n’ resumes it inside the clause. In a relative clause, carry the preposition with the relative form: el tema de què parlàvem, not a calque of “the topic we were talking about.” See why Catalan does not normally strand prepositions.
A natural dialogue
—D’on vens? —De casa dels avis. Hem parlat del dinar de diumenge i m’han donat un pot de mel.
—Where are you coming from? —From my grandparents’ house. We talked about Sunday lunch, and they gave me a jar of honey.
Notice how each occurrence contributes a different relation: origin (de casa), possession (dels avis), topic (del dinar), time-classification (de diumenge), and content (de mel). English would not use the same function word five times.
Regional and register notes
The forms and core uses above are shared across contemporary standard Catalan. Pronunciation varies: unstressed de may be reduced in Central and Balearic speech, while Valencian generally preserves a clearer vowel, but spelling remains de. Formal IEC and AVL usage both require the contractions and elisions described here. Constructions such as de que after estar segur, when a finite que clause is intended, are not accepted merely because they occur in informal speech.
Common Mistakes
❌ Tornem de el poble després de sopar.
Incorrect — de + el must contract.
✅ Tornem del poble després de sopar.
We’re returning from the village after dinner.
❌ És la motxilla la Marta.
Incorrect — Catalan cannot copy English possessive word order; the possessor needs de.
✅ És la motxilla de la Marta.
It’s Marta’s backpack.
❌ Necessito tres quilos pomes.
Incorrect — the measured substance must be introduced by de.
✅ Necessito tres quilos de pomes.
I need three kilos of apples.
❌ Estic convençut de que funcionarà.
Incorrect in standard Catalan — drop de before the finite que-clause.
✅ Estic convençut que funcionarà.
I’m convinced it will work.
❌ Aquest és el tema que parlàvem ahir.
Incorrect — parlar selects de, which cannot simply be stranded or erased.
✅ Aquest és el tema de què parlàvem ahir.
This is the topic we were talking about yesterday.
Short correction task
Correct these: de el centre, una ampolla aigua, la noia que et parlava. The answers are del centre, una ampolla d’aigua, and la noia de qui et parlava. In each case, the repair makes a dependency overt: contraction, content, or a verb-selected relative complement.
Key Takeaways
- Write d’ before a vowel or silent h, and contract de + el/els to del/dels.
- Use de for source, possession, material, content, measure, and lexically selected complements.
- Do not map English of, from, or ’s mechanically; identify the relation between the two constituents.
- Preserve de with nouns and relatives, but do not import Spanish de que where standard Catalan has a bare finite que clause.
- A topicalized de complement is commonly resumed by en, including under negation.
Now practice Catalan
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Start learning Catalan →Related Topics
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