Villes et pays · où ? d’où ?
1 · Most cities: à
Use à for being in or going to most cities. There is usually no article. The preposition stays the same with habiter, être and aller.
| à Londres | in / to London |
| à Bruxelles | in / to Brussels |
J’habite à Lyon. Demain, je vais à Paris.I live in Lyon. Tomorrow, I’m going to Paris.
2 · Feminine countries: en
Many country names ending in -e are feminine. Learn the article with the country: la France, la Belgique, la Suisse. For location or destination, use en and leave out that article.
| la France → en France | France → in / to France |
| la Belgique → en Belgique | Belgium → in / to Belgium |
Elle habite en France et travaille en Suisse.She lives in France and works in Switzerland.
3 · Masculine countries with a consonant: au
Use au with singular masculine countries beginning with a consonant. Think of à + le → au: le Canada, le Japon, le Portugal.
| au Portugal | in / to Portugal |
| au Maroc | in / to Morocco |
Nous allons au Canada. Mon frère habite au Japon.We’re going to Canada. My brother lives in Japan.
4 · Masculine countries with a vowel: en
A vowel at the start changes the location pattern: l’Iran, l’Irak and l’Équateur are masculine, but take en. Check the initial sound as well as the gender.
| en Iran | in / to Iran |
| en Irak | in / to Iraq |
Il va en Iran. Sa sœur habite en Équateur.He’s going to Iran. His sister lives in Ecuador.
5 · Plural countries: aux
Use aux with plural country names. The plural article les points you towards this form: les États-Unis, les Pays-Bas, les Philippines.
| aux Philippines | in / to the Philippines |
Vous habitez aux Pays-Bas ou aux États-Unis ?Do you live in the Netherlands or the United States?
6 · Coming from: de or d’
Use de with most cities, feminine countries and masculine countries beginning with a vowel. Elide de to d’ before a vowel. Notice that en France becomes de France, with no la.
Je viens de France. Elle revient d’Iran.I’m from France. She’s coming back from Iran.
Ce train vient de Paris, et celui-ci vient d’Avignon.That train comes from Paris, and this one comes from Avignon.
7 · Coming from: du or des
For masculine countries with a consonant, use du. For plural countries, use des. Keep the two directions together: au Canada → du Canada; aux Pays-Bas → des Pays-Bas.
| du Maroc | from Morocco |
| des Philippines | from the Philippines |
Il revient du Japon. Nous revenons des États-Unis.He’s coming back from Japan. We’re coming back from the United States.
8 · Learn these exceptions as pairs
An ending in -e is a clue, rather than a complete gender rule: le Mexique, le Cambodge and le Mozambique take au. Some place names use à with no article, including Cuba and Madagascar. Cities with an article can contract too: Le Havre → au Havre.
Je vais au Mexique et je reviens du Mexique.I’m going to Mexico and coming back from Mexico.
Elle habite à Cuba. Il revient de Madagascar.She lives in Cuba. He’s coming back from Madagascar.
Nous allons au Havre. Ce train vient du Havre.We’re going to Le Havre. That train comes from Le Havre.