Parmi toutes les stations de métro, celle du centre‑ville est la moins propre.

Among all the subway stations, the downtown one is the least clean.

Breakdown of Parmi toutes les stations de métro, celle du centre‑ville est la moins propre.

• être: to be
• de: of
• tout: all
• propre: clean
• du: of the
• le métro: the subway
• le moins: the least
• parmi: among
• la station: the station
• celle: the one
• le centre‑ville: the downtown

Questions & Answers about Parmi toutes les stations de métro, celle du centre‑ville est la moins propre.

Why is it celle du centre‑ville and not la station du centre‑ville?

French often avoids repeating a noun that was just mentioned by replacing it with a demonstrative pronoun.

• les stations de métro = the metro stations
• celle = the one (feminine singular, referring back to une station)

So the structure is:

• Parmi toutes les stations de métro, celle du centre‑ville…
  = Among all the metro stations, the one downtown…

If you said:

• Parmi toutes les stations de métro, la station du centre‑ville est la moins propre.

it would be correct, just a bit heavier and more repetitive. Native speakers strongly prefer celle du centre‑ville here.

What exactly does celle mean, and what are the other forms?

Celle is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “the one” (feminine singular).

The full paradigm is:

• celui – masculine singular (the one)
• celle – feminine singular (the one)
• ceux – masculine plural (the ones)
• celles – feminine plural (the ones)

Examples:

• La station de métro du centre‑ville est sale. Celle de la gare est propre.
  The downtown station is dirty. The one at the station is clean.

• Parmi ces lignes, celle‑ci est la plus rapide.
  Among these lines, this one is the fastest.

In your sentence, celle stands for la station (de métro), which is feminine singular, so you must use celle, not celui.

Why is it toutes les stations and not tous les stations?

Tout / toute / tous / toutes agree in gender and number with the noun they modify.

• Masculine singular: tout (tout le métro)
• Feminine singular: toute (toute la ligne)
• Masculine plural: tous (tous les trains)
• Feminine plural: toutes (toutes les stations)

Since stations is feminine plural (une station, des stations), you must use toutes:

• toutes les stations de métro = all the metro stations

Why is it stations de métro and not stations du métro?

Here de is used to form a noun + noun group that describes a type of station:

• une station de métro = a metro station / subway station (kind of station)
• une station de bus = a bus stop / bus station
• une station de ski = a ski resort

Using du (de + le) would suggest more a specific possession or belonging, like:

• la station du métro
  could sound like “the station of the subway system”, which is not how French usually names this concept.

For the normal, generic idea of a subway/metro station, French uses station de métro.

What is the role of parmi in this sentence? Could I use entre instead?

Parmi means “among / out of” and introduces a group from which you are selecting or comparing something.

• Parmi toutes les stations de métro, celle du centre‑ville est la moins propre.
  Among all the metro stations, the downtown one is the least clean.

Entre can sometimes replace parmi, especially in spoken language, but it’s more natural with two elements:

• entre toi et moi = between you and me
• entre ces deux stations = between these two stations

With a larger group like toutes les stations de métro, parmi is the best, most standard choice. Entre toutes les stations de métro is sometimes heard, but parmi is safer and more idiomatic.

Why is it du centre‑ville and not de le centre‑ville?

In French, de + le always contracts to du:

• de + le → du
• de + les → des

Centre‑ville is masculine singular (le centre‑ville), so:

• de le centre‑ville is grammatically impossible
• it must be du centre‑ville

So:

• celle du centre‑ville = the one from the city center / downtown

What’s the difference between la moins propre and la plus sale? Do they mean the same thing?

Grammatically:

• la moins propre = the least clean
• la plus sale = the dirtiest / the most dirty

Logically, in this context they describe the same station: if it’s the least clean, it is also the dirtiest.

However, there’s a slight difference in nuance:

• la moins propre is a bit softer, less blunt
• la plus sale sounds stronger, more negative

Both are correct; your sentence chooses the slightly more polite or less harsh way to say it.

How does the superlative la moins propre work in French? Why do we need la?

French forms the relative superlative with:

definite article (le / la / les) + plus / moins + adjective

Here:

• la – agrees with la station (feminine singular)
• moins – less
• propre – clean

So la moins propre = the least clean (one).

You always need the definite article to make the superlative:

• propre – clean
• moins propre – less clean
• la moins propre – the least clean
• la plus propre – the cleanest
• les plus propres – the cleanest (plural)

Why is it la moins propre and not le moins propre?

The article in the superlative agrees with the noun being described, not with the adjective itself.

• Noun: une station → feminine singular
• So: la moins propre, not le moins propre

Other examples:

• Ce métro est le plus rapide. (métro is masculine → le plus rapide)
• Cette ligne est la plus rapide. (ligne is feminine → la plus rapide)
• Ces stations sont les plus propres. (stations is plural → les plus propres)

Could I say … est la moins propre station instead of … est la moins propre?

No, that word order is not natural in French.

You have two main options:

1. Superlative as a predicate (after “être”) – like your sentence

   • Celle du centre‑ville est la moins propre.
     The downtown one is the least clean.

2. Superlative inside the noun phrase (when the noun is mentioned right there):

   • C’est la station de métro la moins propre du réseau.
     It’s the dirtiest metro station in the network.

You normally don’t say la moins propre station. In French, with superlatives, we typically do:

• la station la moins propre (article + noun + article + plus/moins + adjective),
  not la moins propre station in this kind of context.

Why does propre come after the noun (or after “être”)? Could it go before, like in English?

Most French adjectives normally come after the noun and after the verb être:

• une station propre – a clean station
• La station est propre. – The station is clean.

With propre, position can change the meaning:

• sa propre station = her own station
• sa station propre = her clean station

So for “clean”, propre usually comes after the noun.

In your sentence, propre is in a predicate after être, which is standard:

• … celle du centre‑ville est la moins propre.
  … the one downtown is the least clean.

Could we say Parmi toutes les stations de métro, celle du centre‑ville est la moins propre de toutes? Is that redundant?

Yes, you can say it, and yes, it’s somewhat redundant, but still acceptable, especially in speech:

• Parmi toutes les stations de métro, celle du centre‑ville est la moins propre de toutes.
  Among all the metro stations, the downtown one is the least clean of all.

The information “of all” is already in parmi toutes les stations, so de toutes just reinforces it. Native speakers often add de toutes for emphasis, even if it’s logically repetitive.

Is station de métro the normal way to say “subway station / metro station” in France?

Yes.

• In France, une station de métro is the standard term for a subway/metro station.
• In Quebec, you’ll also hear une station de métro.
• In other contexts, métro by itself can mean the system:
  Je prends le métro. – I take the subway.

So station de métro is exactly what you should use for “metro station / subway station.”