ELONIO
Log inSign up

Le téléphone est sur la table.

Le téléphone est sur la table.
The phone is on the table.
FromLesson 4inHardcore French

Breakdown of Le téléphone est sur la table.

être
to be
la table
the table
sur
on
le téléphone
the phone

Questions & Answers about Le téléphone est sur la table.

Why do we use Le before téléphone and la before table?
In French, nouns have a gender. Téléphone is masculine, so it takes le. Table is feminine, so it takes la. French almost always requires an article before a noun.
What does the word sur mean in French?
Sur generally means on or on top of. It indicates the position of one object resting on the surface of another.
Could we say Le téléphone est à la table instead?
Not typically. À can mean at, to, or in, but it doesn’t convey the idea of something resting on top. Sur is correct to mean the phone is literally on the table.
Can we leave out est and just say Le téléphone sur la table in French?
No. In French, you generally need a verb in a sentence to express a state of being, so est (third-person singular of être) is necessary for the sentence to be grammatically correct.
Is the word téléphone always masculine?
Yes, téléphone is consistently masculine, so it will always take the masculine article le and masculine forms of any adjectives that might describe it.
AI Language TutorTry it ↗
“How does grammatical gender work in French?”
Every French noun is either masculine or feminine, and this affects the articles and adjectives used with it. "Le" is used with masculine nouns and "la" with feminine ones. Adjectives also change form to match — for example, "petit" (masc.) becomes "petite" (fem.).

Sign up free — start using our AI language tutor

Start learning French

Master French — from Le téléphone est sur la table to fluency

All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.

  • ✓Infinitely deep — unlimited vocabulary and grammar
  • ✓Fast-paced — build complex sentences from the start
  • ✓Unforgettable — efficient spaced repetition system
  • ✓ AI tutor to answer your grammar questions
Start learning French→