Picture scene
Boîte or bocal? Explore a kitchen shelf in French
Find boxes, tins and jars on a kitchen shelf. Learn boîte, bocal and bocaux, describe materials and contents, then check four useful patterns.
- A2
- 8 things to find
- Tap to explore
- Find-it game
- Learn this in the A2 notebook →
In short
Une boîte is a box or tin; un bocal is a jar, usually with a wide opening and a lid. Say des boîtes but des bocaux. Compare une boîte de biscuits with un bocal d’olives on the shelf below.
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Explore the kitchen shelf: name it, then play Find it
Find:
What is the difference between une boîte and un bocal?
| French | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| une boîte / un bocal | The container: a box or a jar |
| une boîte en métal | The material: metal |
| un bocal en verre | The material: glass |
| une boîte de biscuits | The contents: biscuits |
| un bocal de boutons | The contents: buttons |
| une boîte à chaussures | The purpose: a shoe box |
A tin can be une boîte: the red biscuit tin is metal. A jar can hold objects as well as food: un bocal de boutons is a jar of buttons. Material and contents each add a separate detail.
- Éva
Où est-ce que je mets les olives ?
Where shall I put the olives?
- Malik
Pose le bocal sur l’étagère, à côté de la boîte de biscuits.
Put the jar on the shelf, beside the biscuit tin.
- Éva
Et ces deux bocaux vides ?
And these two empty jars?
- Malik
Dans le placard du bas, s’il te plaît.
In the bottom cupboard, please.
In a shop, you will also hear un pot de confiture, a jar of jam. Keep that familiar combination alongside bocal. Elsewhere, une boîte mail means an email inbox, and une boîte de nuit means a nightclub.