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In English, we use "in" when staying somewhere (living *in* Paris) and "to" when traveling (going *to* Paris). French simplifies this: the preposition you use depends entirely on the *type* of place (city, masculine country, feminine country), regardless of whether you are already there or on your way.

### Feminine Countries (en)

In French, countries have genders. As a general rule, countries ending in the letter "-e" (like *la France* and *l'Espagne*) are feminine. 

To say "in" or "to" a feminine country, use the preposition **en**.

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### Cities (à)

Unlike countries, cities generally do not take gendered articles like *le* or *la*. For any city, use the preposition **à** to express "in" or "to". Be sure to include the grave accent!

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### Masculine Countries (au)

Countries that do not end in "-e" are usually masculine (like *le Japon*, *le Canada*, and *le Maroc*). 

To say "in" or "to" a masculine country, use **au** (a contraction of *à* + *le*).

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### Plural Countries (aux)

A few countries are plural, most notably *les États-Unis* (the United States). For plural countries, use the preposition **aux** (a contraction of *à* + *les*). 

Note that the "x" in *aux* makes a "z" sound when it links to a following vowel, as it does in *aux États-Unis*.

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### Putting It All Together

When talking about multiple destinations, just remember to pair each with its matching preposition: **à** for cities, **en** for feminine countries, **au** for masculine countries, and **aux** for plural countries.

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Prepositions for cities and countries (à, en, au, aux)

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

phrase

prep

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

Singular 'to be' and indefinite articles (je suis un...)

Singular definite articles (le, la, l')

Identifying vs. describing (c'est vs. il est)

Feminine adjective agreement (+e)

Plural pronouns and 'to be' (nous sommes, vous êtes)

Formal and informal you (tu vs. vous)

Plural nouns and indefinite articles (des... -s)

Plural definite articles (les)

Plural adjective agreement (+s)

Stressed pronouns (moi, toi, lui)

The verb "to have" singular (j'ai, tu as, il a)

The verb "to have" plural (nous avons, vous avez, ils ont)

There is / there are (il y a)

Basic verbal negation (ne... pas)

Negating "there is" (il n'y a pas de)

Regular -er verbs singular (je parle, tu parles, il parle)

Regular -er verbs plural (nous parlons, vous parlez, ils parlent)

The verb "to be called" (s'appeler)

Yes/no questions with intonation (Tu parles ?)

Yes/no questions with "Est-ce que" (Est-ce que tu parles ?)

Informal questions (qui, que, quoi)

Standard questions (est-ce que)

Singular possessives (mon, ton, son)

Plural possessives (notre, votre, leur)

Demonstrative adjectives (ce, cet, cette, ces)

Adjective placement

Numbers 1 to 20

Numbers 21 to 100

Age and physical states (avoir)

The verb to go (aller)

The preposition to/at (à, au, aux)

Question word for location (où)

The verb to come (venir)

The preposition from/of (de, du, des)

Question word for origin (d'où)

The verb to do/make (faire)

Days of the week (lundi, mardi)

Telling time (il est... heure)

Question words for time (quand, à quelle heure)

The verb to take or have (prendre)

The verb to drink (boire)

Partitive articles (du, de la, de l')

Zero quantity (pas de)

Expressions of quantity (un peu de, beaucoup de)

Asking how much or how many (combien, combien de)

Very vs. a lot (très, beaucoup)

The verb to want (vouloir)

Polite requests (je voudrais)

The verb to be able to (pouvoir)

Obligation (devoir)

General obligation (il faut)

Why and because (pourquoi, parce que)

Expressing purpose (pour)

Reflexive pronouns (me, te, se, nous, vous)

Daily routine verbs (se lever, s'habiller)

Adverbs of frequency (parfois, rarement)

Never (ne... jamais)

Regular -ir verbs (choisir, finir)

Regular -re verbs (attendre, répondre)

Irregular -ir verbs (sortir, partir, dormir)

Informal 'we' (on)

The imperative mood

Direct object pronouns (le, la, les, l')

The near future (aller + infinitive)

The recent past (venir de + infinitive)

The passé composé with avoir

Irregular past participles (eu, été, fait, pris, vu)

The passé composé with être

The negative passé composé (ne ... pas)

Saying goodbye

Please, sorry and thank you

Which / what (quel)

The indefinite adjective (tout, tous)

Irregular feminine adjectives (-euse, -ve)

Double consonant adjectives (-enne, -ette)

Feminine adjective endings (-ère, -trice)

Irregular plurals (-x)

Plurals ending in -al (-aux)

Present tense stem changes (e to è)

Accent stem changes (é to è)

Double consonant verbs (appeler, jeter)

Verbs ending in -yer (payer, envoyer)

Irregular communication verbs (dire, lire)

Irregular action verbs (écrire, mettre)

Knowing facts vs. familiarity (savoir, connaître)

Question	Answer
in, to	en
France	la France
We live in France.	Nous habitons en France.
She works in France now.	Elle travaille en France maintenant.
Spain	l'Espagne
Are you traveling to Spain?	Est-ce que tu voyages en Espagne ?
They have a house in Spain.	Ils ont une maison en Espagne.
Paris	Paris
My brother lives in Paris.	Mon frère habite à Paris.
London	Londres
Do you go to London often?	Vous allez souvent à Londres ?
Rome	Rome
We are visiting a museum in Rome.	Nous visitons un musée à Rome.
Where do you live, in Paris or in London?	Où est-ce que tu habites, à Paris ou à Londres ?
There are no beaches in Paris.	Il n'y a pas de plages à Paris.
Japan	le Japon
I work in Japan.	Je travaille au Japon.
Canada	le Canada
My cousin studies in Canada.	Mon cousin étudie au Canada.
Morocco	le Maroc
Are you going to Morocco?	Est-ce que vous allez au Maroc ?
Their parents live in Japan.	Leurs parents habitent au Japon.
United States	les États-Unis
Our team works in the United States.	Notre équipe travaille aux États-Unis.
They are going to the United States tomorrow.	Ils vont aux États-Unis demain.
We are traveling to Canada and to France.	Nous voyageons au Canada et en France.
Where are they going, to Morocco or to Rome?	Où est-ce qu'ils vont, au Maroc ou à Rome ?
the north	le nord
Paris is in the north of France.	Paris est dans le nord de la France.
We are going to the north.	Nous allons dans le nord.
the south	le sud
The south of France is very beautiful.	Le sud de la France est très beau.
They live in the south.	Ils habitent dans le sud.
the east (m)	l'est
My region is east of Paris.	Ma région est à l'est de Paris.
This city is in the east.	Cette ville est à l'est.
the west (m)	l'ouest
The west of France has beaches.	L'ouest de la France a des plages.
We are going west.	Nous allons à l'ouest.
Chinese	chinois
My friend is Chinese.	Mon ami est chinois.
We are going to a Chinese restaurant.	Nous allons dans un restaurant chinois.
Japanese	japonais
This pupil is Japanese.	Cet élève est japonais.
I eat in a Japanese restaurant.	Je mange dans un restaurant japonais.
American	américain
My friend is American.	Mon ami est américain.
We are going to an American restaurant.	Nous allons dans un restaurant américain.

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