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Le, La, L’, Les: French Definite Articles
The French definite articles are le (masculine), la (feminine), l’ (before a vowel sound), and les (plural) — all four mean "the". The catch for English speakers is not the forms; it is that French also uses them where English says nothing at all:
J’aime le café. Les chats sont indépendants.
This page covers the four forms, the places where English drops "the" but French cannot, and the contractions with à and de: au, aux, du, des. For "a/an" and plural "some" — un, une, des — see indefinite articles.
In short
- Le = masculine singular, la = feminine singular, les = plural.
- L’ replaces le or la before a vowel sound, including most mute h: l’école, l’hôtel.
- French keeps the article for general statements and after aimer, adorer, détester, préférer: j’aime le café.
- With à and de, le and les contract: au, aux, du, des.
definite articlecontracted form· hover a highlighted word for its label
The four forms: le, la, l’, les
The form depends on the noun’s gender and number — nothing else. If the gender itself is your problem, start with noun gender, then come back here. Before a vowel sound, le and la both shrink to l’, and that includes most words starting with a mute h: l’hôtel, l’homme. A small group of "aspirated h" words resist elision — le héros, la Hollande — and are best memorized as chunks.
| Noun type | Article | Example |
|---|---|---|
| masculine singular | le | le train |
| feminine singular | la | la gare |
| singular before a vowel sound (incl. most mute h) | l’ | l’école, l’hôtel |
| plural (any gender) | les | les enfants |
The train is late and the station is crowded.
— Le matches masculine train; la matches feminine gare.
The hotel is across from the church.
— L’hôtel has a mute h; l’église starts with a vowel — both take l’.
The children are in the garden.
— Les works for every plural noun, masculine or feminine.
Where English drops "the" — and French can’t
English happily uses bare nouns for generalities: "I like coffee", "cats are independent", "life is short". French almost never leaves a noun bare. When you talk about a whole category or an idea in general, French uses the definite article — that is why j’aime le café is correct and j’aime café is not.
Keep the definite article for
- General statements about a whole category: les chats sont indépendants, le sport est important
- Likes and dislikes after aimer, adorer, détester, préférer: j’adore le fromage
- Body parts with reflexive verbs: je me lave les mains — not "mes mains"
- Le + a day of the week for a routine: le samedi = every Saturday (samedi alone = on Saturday — one specific Saturday)
I like coffee, but I prefer tea.
— English drops "the"; French keeps le after aimer and préférer.
Cats are independent.
— A statement about all cats: Les covers the whole category.
She hates winter.
— Détester works like aimer: l’hiver keeps its article, elided before the vowel sound.
She brushes her teeth twice a day.
— With a reflexive verb, French says les dents where English says "her teeth".
On Mondays, she starts at eight.
— Le + a day of the week means "every": le lundi = every Monday.
The contractions: au, aux, du, des
When the prepositions à or de land in front of le or les, French fuses them into a single word — this is mandatory, not a stylistic choice. You can never say "à le" or "de les". The feminine and elided forms stay untouched: à la, à l’, de la, de l’.
| With à | With de |
|---|---|
| à + le → au (au marché) | de + le → du (du professeur) |
| à + les → aux (aux voisins) | de + les → des (des enfants) |
| à + la → à la (no change) | de + la → de la (no change) |
| à + l’ → à l’ (no change) | de + l’ → de l’ (no change) |
We go to the market and talk to the neighbors.
— À + le fuses into au; à + les fuses into aux.
She goes to the pool, then to school.
— Feminine à la and elided à l’ never contract.
It’s the teacher’s bike and the children’s bag.
— De + le gives du; de + les gives des.
Common mistakes
✗J’aime café le matin.
✓J’aime le café le matin.
After aimer, the thing you like is a whole category, and categories take the definite article.
✗La école est fermée aujourd’hui.
✓L’école est fermée aujourd’hui.
Before a vowel sound, le and la elide to l’ — there is no choice about it.
✗Nous allons à le marché.
✓Nous allons au marché.
À + le always contracts to au; "à le" never survives in French.
✗C’est la voiture de les voisins.
✓C’est la voiture des voisins.
De + les always contracts to des, just as de + le becomes du.
Check yourself
1 / 4J’adore ___ chocolat.
2 / 4Nous allons ___ cinéma.
3 / 4Il parle ___ étudiants.
4 / 4___ hôtel est complet.
Frequently asked questions
What are the four definite articles in French?
Le (masculine singular), la (feminine singular), l’ (before a vowel sound), and les (plural). All four translate as "the", but French uses them far more often than English — including in general statements like les enfants aiment le chocolat.
Why do the French say "j’aime le café" instead of "j’aime café"?
French rarely allows a bare noun. After verbs of liking — aimer, adorer, détester, préférer — the thing you like is treated as a whole category, and categories take the definite article: j’aime le café, elle déteste les lundis.
When do à and de contract with the definite article?
Only with le and les: à + le = au, à + les = aux, de + le = du, de + les = des. The forms à la, à l’, de la and de l’ never contract: à la gare, de l’école.
When do I use l’ instead of le or la?
Before any singular noun starting with a vowel sound, including most words with a mute h: l’école, l’hôtel, l’homme. A small group of "aspirated h" words resist elision and keep the full article: le héros, la Hollande.
Do days of the week take le in French?
Only for routines: le samedi means "every Saturday" or "on Saturdays". For one specific day, French drops the article — samedi alone means "on Saturday". See dates and days for the full system.
Memory tip
English drops "the" for generalities; French almost never drops the article. If a noun is in the sentence, an article usually is too — and whenever à or de sits before le or les, check that it became au, aux, du or des.
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