Le départ du train est prévu à huit heures.

to be

Breakdown of Le départ du train est prévu à huit heures.

• à: at
• du: of
• le train: the train

Questions & Answers about Le départ du train est prévu à huit heures.

Why is it le départ instead of using a verb, like the train leaves?

Because départ is a noun meaning departure. French often uses a noun phrase where English might prefer a verb.

So this sentence is structured more like:

• The departure of the train is scheduled for eight o’clock

rather than:

• The train leaves at eight o’clock

Both are natural in French, but le départ du train sounds a bit more formal or timetable-like.

Why is it du train and not de le train?

Because de + le contracts to du in French.

So:

• de le train → du train

Here, du train means of the train.

This is a very common contraction:

• de + le → du
• de + les → des

For example:

• la porte du wagon = the door of the carriage
• les horaires des trains = the train schedules

What exactly does du train mean here?

It means of the train.

In le départ du train, the phrase du train tells you what is departing: it is the train’s departure or the departure of the train.

This is not possession in the strong English sense, but simply a relationship between the two nouns.