L'eau est sur la table.

Breakdown of L'eau est sur la table.

être
to be
la table
the table
sur
on
l'eau
the water

Questions & Answers about L'eau est sur la table.

Why is it l'eau instead of la eau or le eau?
Because eau starts with a vowel, the word for "the" (le or la) drops its vowel and becomes l' so the words flow together easily. Even though l' hides the gender, eau is actually a feminine noun. If you wanted to say "a water", you would use the feminine indefinite article: une eau.
How can I tell what gender the word "table" is here?
The word la before it gives it away! La is the feminine word for "the", which tells us table is a feminine noun. If we wanted to change this sentence to say "a table" instead of "the table", we would use the feminine indefinite article and say une table.
How do I pronounce "est"? Do I say the "s" and "t"?
No, the s and t at the end are completely silent! Est (meaning "is") is pronounced very much like the short English "eh" sound. It is the "he/she/it" form of the verb être (to be).
Does the word "sur" mean "sure"?
No, they are false friends! The preposition sur means "on" or "on top of". There is a French word sûr (with a little "hat" or circumflex accent on the u) that does mean "sure" or "certain", but the spelling without the accent just means "on".

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