Je veux de l'eau parce que je mange du fromage.

I want some water because I am eating cheese.

Breakdown of Je veux de l'eau parce que je mange du fromage.

• je: I
• manger: to eat
• l'eau: the water
• le fromage: the cheese
• vouloir: to want
• parce que: because
• du: some
• de l': some

Questions & Answers about Je veux de l'eau parce que je mange du fromage.

Why do we say de l’eau instead of de eau?

Before a vowel or silent ‘h,’ the partitive article de le contracts to de l’. So we get de l’eau (some water) rather than de eau.

Why does French use du fromage instead of le fromage?

Du is the partitive article, conveying the idea of “some cheese” rather than cheese in general (le fromage). In English, we often omit “some,” but in French, we typically include the partitive article to talk about an unspecified quantity.

Why do we use parce que to connect the two clauses?

Parce que means “because,” indicating a reason or cause for wanting water. It is the most commonly used expression for “because” in French.

Is it correct to say Je veux when asking politely for water?

Je veux literally means “I want,” which can sound strong in French. If you want to be more polite, you could say Je voudrais (I would like). However, Je veux is not wrong grammatically—it just feels more direct.

Why is there no word for “some” in the English translation where we have du or de l’ in French?

In English, it’s common to omit the word “some,” but in French, using the partitive articles du / de la / de l’ is necessary when talking about nonspecific quantities. This is simply a grammatical difference between the two languages.