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### Saying "The" (le and la)

Just like with "a" and "an", the French word for "the" changes based on the noun's gender:
- Use **le** for masculine nouns.
- Use **la** for feminine nouns.

To help describe where things are, the examples below also use a few helpful words for location: **ici** (here), **là** (there), and **sur** (on).

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### Nouns Starting with a Vowel (l')

French pronunciation prefers a smooth flow of sound and avoids placing two vowels right next to each other. 

When a singular noun starts with a vowel, you cannot use *le* or *la*. Instead, drop the "e" or "a" and replace it with an apostrophe to combine the article directly with the noun. 

This makes the article become **l'** for both masculine and feminine nouns!

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### Summary of Singular Definite Articles

| Noun | Article | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | le | le chat |
| Feminine | la | la table |
| Starts with a vowel | l' | l'enfant |

Singular definite articles (le, la, l')

adjective

adverb

conjunction

contraction

determiner

interjection

noun

numeral

particle

phrase

prep

preposition

pronoun

sentence

verb

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

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)

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

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
the cat	le chat
here	ici
The cat is here.	Le chat est ici.
the dog	le chien
there	là
The dog is there.	Le chien est là.
the table	la table
The table is there.	La table est là.
the apple	la pomme
on	sur
The apple is on the table.	La pomme est sur la table.
the child	l'enfant
The child is a boy.	L'enfant est un garçon.
the orange	l'orange
The orange is here.	L'orange est ici.
the water	l'eau
The water is on the table.	L'eau est sur la table.
The child is here.	L'enfant est ici.
The cat is on the table!	Le chat est sur la table !
The dog is on the table.	Le chien est sur la table.
The orange is on the table.	L'orange est sur la table.
The water is there.	L'eau est là.
You are the child.	Tu es l'enfant.
The apple is there.	La pomme est là.