Log inSign up

Él es de Francia.

Él es de Francia.
He is from France.
From Lesson 23:Origin and possession (de, del)·Spanish (Spain)

Questions & Answers about Él es de Francia.

Why do we use de in this sentence?
In Spanish, the preposition de is used to express origin, showing where someone or something is from. Here, it translates directly to 'from'.
Why do we use es instead of está?
We use es (from the verb ser) because a person's country of origin is treated as a core, permanent characteristic. The other Spanish verb for 'to be' (estar) is used for temporary locations, like where you are visiting right now.
Why does Él have an accent mark?
The written accent marks the difference between Él (meaning 'he') and the exact same letters without an accent, el (meaning 'the', as in el libro).
Why isn't it de la Francia?
Just like in English, most countries in Spanish do not need a word for 'the' (el or la) in front of their names. You simply link de straight to the country name.

Learn Él es de Francia and more in Spanish

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

  • ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
  • ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
  • ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free
Start learning Spanish →