Je mange du pain au déjeuner.

I eat bread at lunch.

Breakdown of Je mange du pain au déjeuner.

• je: I
• manger: to eat
• le pain: the bread
• du: some
• le déjeuner: the lunch

Questions & Answers about Je mange du pain au déjeuner.

Why do we use du before pain?

We use du to indicate an unspecified quantity of something uncountable. In French, du pain literally means some bread rather than just bread in general.

What is the function of au déjeuner in this sentence?

The phrase au déjeuner indicates that the action (eating bread) is happening at lunchtime. The preposition à here is combined with the definite article le to form au, meaning at or for in this context.

Could I just say Je mange pain without du?

Not really. In French, if you want to say you are eating bread in a general or undefined quantity, you use the partitive article du. Saying Je mange pain sounds incomplete or unnatural in French unless you specify something else (like Je mange un pain entier, meaning I am eating a whole loaf).

Why is it je mange and not je manges?

In French, the -er verb manger is conjugated as je mange, tu manges, il/elle/on mange, etc. The ending -e is used for the je form in the present tense. Je manges is incorrect.

Can I replace au déjeuner with pour le déjeuner?

Yes, you can say Je mange du pain pour le déjeuner. However, pour le déjeuner focuses on the purpose of the bread (that it is intended for lunch), while au déjeuner focuses more on the fact that you are eating it specifically at lunchtime. Both are correct, but au déjeuner might sound more natural in everyday conversation.