Foreign Languages
Partitive articles.
Definition
Partitive articles in French (du, de la, de l', des) express an unspecified quantity of something, equivalent to 'some' or 'any' in English. They are required when talking about food, drinks, or abstract concepts in general quantities. After negation, all partitive articles change to 'de' or 'd'.'
Examples
Real-world.
- 1 'Je veux du pain' — I want some bread
- 2 'Elle boit de la limonade' — She drinks some lemonade
- 3 'Il n'y a pas de lait' — There is no milk (partitive becomes 'de' after negation)
Key Fact
du (masc.), de la (fem.), de l' (before vowel), des (plural). All become de/d' after negation.