Lesson 22: Directions & Prepositions of Place
Où est la gare ? — Prepositions of Place & Directions · A0 → A1 · Part 3 · Food, Shopping & Going Out
You will say exactly where things are with sur, sous, dans, devant, derrière, à côté de and the other prepositions of place. You will politely ask the way in the street, understand the answer, and give simple directions yourself.
In this lesson
- prepositions of place
- asking the way
- giving directions
- imperative preview
Vocabulary
| French | Meaning | Say it | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| sur | on / on top of | sür * سُور * | The 'u' is the tight French u. 'Le livre est sur la table' = the book is on the table. Touching the surface. |
| sous | under / below | soo سو | The final s is silent: 'soo'. 'Le chat est sous la table' = the cat is under the table. |
| dans | in / inside | dan داں | The 'an' is nasal — air through the nose. Final s is silent. 'Dans la maison' = inside the house. |
| devant | in front of | duh-van دُوواں | The 'an' is nasal. 'Devant la gare' = in front of the station — facing it. |
| derrière | behind | deh-ryehr دیرْییر | The 'è' is an open 'eh' sound and both r's are soft French throat r's: deh-RYEHR. |
| à côté de | next to / beside | a ko-tay duh آ کوتے دُو | Literally 'at the side of'. Followed by a noun: à côté de la boulangerie. The ê is 'ay'. |
| entre | between | an-tr انْتر | Used with two things: entre la banque et le café = between the bank and the café. Final e is silent. |
| près de | near / close to | preh duh پْرے دُو | The 'ê' is 'eh'. 'Près de la gare' = near the station. Do not confuse with 'prêt' (ready). |
| loin de | far from | lwan duh لواں دُو | The 'oin' is a nasal sound: 'lwan', not 'lo-in'. 'Loin de la ville' = far from the town. |
| en face de | opposite / facing | an fas duh اں فاس دُو | 'en face de la gare' = directly opposite the station, on the other side of the road. |
| au-dessus de | above / over | o duh-sü duh او دُوسُو دُو | NOT touching — there is space between. The 'u' in dessus is the tight French u. |
| au-dessous de | below / underneath | o duh-soo duh او دُوسو دُو | The opposite of au-dessus de. Careful: 'dessus' has a tight u, 'dessous' has an 'oo' sound. |
| à gauche | on the left / to the left | a gosh آ گوش | The 'au' in gauche is a long 'o' and 'che' is 'sh'. Say 'gosh', not 'gow-cheh'. |
| à droite | on the right / to the right | a drwat آ دروا | 'oi' in French is always 'wa'. So droite = 'drwat'. The final e is silent. |
| tout droit | straight on / straight ahead | too drwa تو دروا | The final t of tout and the final t of droit are both silent. Say 'too-drwa'. Literally 'all straight'. |
| la gare | the train station | la gar لا گار | Feminine (la). 'la gare' is the TRAIN station. The metro station is 'la station de métro'. |
Pronunciation
| Word | Sounds like | Slowly | How to make the sound |
|---|---|---|---|
| sur | sür | sür | The tight French u: lips rounded as if whistling, tongue saying 'ee'. It sits exactly between 'see' and 'soo'. There is no true Urdu equivalent — 'سُور' in this lesson is only a rough signpost. |
| où est la gare ? | oo eh la gar | oo ... eh ... la ... gar | Link 'où est' into one unit: 'oo-eh'. The r of gare is a soft throat r, and the final e is silent. |
| tout droit | too drwa | too ... drwa | Both final t sounds are silent. The 'oi' is always 'wa'. Say it in one beat: 'too-drwa'. |
| à droite / à gauche | a drwat / a gosh | a ... drwat / a ... gosh | Contrast them out loud: drwat has a clear r after d; gosh has no r at all. The 'au' of gauche is a long open 'o'. |
| en face de | an fas duh | an ... fas ... duh | 'an' is nasal — air through the nose, tongue not touching. 'face' is 'fas' with a silent e. |
| derrière | deh-ryehr | deh ... ryehr | Two syllables with two soft throat r's. The 'è' is an open 'eh'. Do not roll the r like Urdu ر. |
Lesson 22 sound focus: the nasals in dans / devant / loin, the French r in droite and derrière, and the tight u in sur and dessus. Get these right and people will understand your directions instantly.
Grammar
Les prépositions de lieu — where things are
A preposition of place puts one thing in relation to another. French uses them exactly like English, so the main work is memory, not logic. Two of them need a small warning. First, 'dans' means inside a container or a space (dans la boîte, dans le magasin), while 'sur' and 'sous' need surface contact. Second, the longer ones end in 'de' and must keep it in front of the noun: à côté DE la gare, en face DE la banque — the 'de' never disappears. Also note that à + le becomes A U (au-dessus de) and à + les becomes AUX, the same contraction rule you already know from du and des.
Demander et donner le chemin
To ask the way, start with EXCUSEZ-MOI (excuse me), then OÙ EST + place (where is…?), or COMMENT ALLER À + place (how do I get to…?). Then add s'il vous plaît. To check how far it is: C'EST LOIN ? The person will answer with one of the fixed direction phrases: allez tout droit, tournez à gauche, tournez à droite, prenez la première rue, continuez, traversez la rue, c'est à gauche. IMPORTANT: those verbs (allez, tournez, prenez, continuez, traversez) are the imperative — the command form. The full imperative with all its rules comes in lesson 29. For now, learn them as ready-made street phrases, exactly like 'Excusez-moi'.
Examples
| French | English | Say it |
|---|---|---|
| Excusez-moi, où est la gare, s'il vous plaît ? | Excuse me, where is the train station, please? | ex-kü-zay mwa, oo eh la gar, seel voo pleh |
| Comment aller à la gare ? | How do I get to the station? | ko-man a-lay a la gar |
| C'est loin ? | Is it far? | say lwan |
| Non, c'est près. Cinq minutes à pied. | No, it's near. Five minutes on foot. | non, say preh, sank mee-nüt a pyay |
| Allez tout droit, puis tournez à gauche. | Go straight on, then turn left. | a-lay too drwa, püee toor-nay a gosh |
| Tournez à droite à la première rue. | Turn right at the first street. | toor-nay a drwat a la pruh-myehr rü |
| Prenez la deuxième rue à gauche. | Take the second street on the left. | pruh-nay la duh-zyem rü a gosh |
| Continuez, puis traversez la rue. | Carry on, then cross the street. | kon-tee-nü-ay, püee tra-vehr-say la rü |
| La banque est en face de la gare. | The bank is opposite the station. | la bank eh an fas duh la gar |
| Le café est à côté de la boulangerie. | The café is next to the bakery. | luh ka-fay eh a ko-tay duh la boo-lanzh-ree |
| Le supermarché est entre la banque et le marché. | The supermarket is between the bank and the market. | luh sü-pehr-mar-shay eh an-tr la bank ay luh mar-shay |
| J'habite près de la gare. | I live near the station. | zha-beet preh duh la gar |
| Le métro est sous la place. | The metro is under the square. | luh may-tro eh soo la plas |
| Le sac est sur la chaise, la clé est dans le sac. | The bag is on the chair, the key is in the bag. | luh sak eh sür la shez, la klay eh dan luh sak |
Dialogue: Perdu dans la rue
In France always begin with 'Excusez-moi' or 'Bonjour' before asking for directions. Jumping straight to the question is considered rude.
| French | English | Say it | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Touriste | Excusez-moi, madame. Où est la gare, s'il vous plaît ? | Excuse me, madam. Where is the station, please? | ex-kü-zay mwa, ma-dam, oo eh la gar, seel voo pleh |
| Dame | La gare ? Allez tout droit, puis tournez à gauche. | The station? Go straight on, then turn left. | la gar, a-lay too drwa, püee toor-nay a gosh |
| Touriste | C'est loin ? | Is it far? | say lwan |
| Dame | Non, c'est à dix minutes à pied. | No, it's ten minutes on foot. | non, say ta dee mee-nüt a pyay |
| Touriste | Et je peux prendre le bus ? | And can I take the bus? | ay zhuh puh pran-dr luh büs |
| Dame | Oui, la ligne douze. L'arrêt est en face de la boulangerie. | Yes, line twelve. The stop is opposite the bakery. | wee, la leen dooz, la-reh eh an fas duh la boo-lanzh-ree |
| Touriste | Merci beaucoup, madame ! | Thank you very much, madam! | mehr-see bo-koo, ma-dam |
| Dame | Je vous en prie. Bonne journée ! | You're welcome. Have a good day! | zhuh voo zan pree, bon zhoor-nay |
Say it out loud
- Excusez-moi, où est la gare ? — Excuse me, where is the station? Link 'où est': oo-eh. Rising melody at the end.
- Comment aller au marché ? — How do I get to the market? 'au' = o. Three smooth beats: ko-man-a-lay-o-mar-shay.
- C'est loin ? — Is it far? 'oin' is nasal: lwan, one syllable.
- Allez tout droit. — Go straight on. Both t's are silent.
- Tournez à gauche, puis à droite. — Turn left, then right. Contrast gosh (no r) with drwat (clear r).
- La banque est à côté du café. — The bank is next to the café. Note 'du' here: à côté de + le = à côté du.
- Prenez la deuxième rue à gauche. — Take the second street on the left. 'deuxième' = duh-ZYEM.
- Le métro est en face de la poste. — The metro is opposite the post office. Keep 'en face de' in one block: an-fas-duh.
Listening practice: Où est le musée ?
Excusez-moi, monsieur. Où est le musée, s'il vous plaît ? Le musée ? Allez tout droit, puis tournez à droite. C'est loin ? Non, c'est à cinq minutes à pied. Et il y a un bus ? Oui, le bus numéro dix. L'arrêt est devant la banque. Merci beaucoup ! Je vous en prie. Bonne visite !
Excuse me, sir. Where is the museum, please? The museum? Go straight on, then turn right. Is it far? No, it's five minutes on foot. And is there a bus? Yes, bus number ten. The stop is in front of the bank. Thank you very much! You're welcome. Enjoy your visit!
Questions
- What is the person looking for? The museum / The station / The market → The museum
- What is the first direction given? Turn left / Go straight on / Turn back → Go straight on
- Then what should the person do? Take the second street / Turn right / Cross the street → Turn right
- How far is it? Ten minutes on foot / Five minutes on foot / It is very far → Five minutes on foot
- Where is the bus stop? In front of the bank / Next to the museum / Opposite the station → In front of the bank
Remember this
- Prepositions of place: sur, sous, dans, devant, derrière, à côté de, entre, près de, loin de, en face de, au-dessus de, au-dessous de.
- Directions: à gauche, à droite, tout droit.
- Learn them in pairs: sur / sous, devant / derrière, au-dessus de / au-dessous de.
- The longer prepositions always keep 'de': à côté de la gare, en face de la banque.
- Ask the way: Excusez-moi, où est la gare, s'il vous plaît ? / Comment aller à… ? / C'est loin ?
- Give the way with fixed phrases: allez tout droit, tournez à gauche, prenez la première rue, continuez, traversez la rue.
- Those direction verbs are the imperative. The full imperative comes in lesson 29 — for now they are fixed phrases.
- Transport words from lesson 16: à pied, en bus, en métro.
- Ordinals: la première rue (first street), la deuxième rue (second street).
- Always start with Bonjour or Excusez-moi before asking a stranger for directions.
Common mistakes
| Instead of | Say | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Où la gare ? | Où est la gare ? | French always keeps the verb. 'Où' alone cannot be joined straight to a noun. |
| à côté la gare | à côté de la gare | These longer prepositions always keep their 'de' in front of the noun. |
| sur la table for a pen inside a drawer | dans le tiroir, sur la table | Sur means on the surface, touching it. If it is inside something, use dans. |
| Excusez-moi ! Où est la gare ? (without s'il vous plaît) | Excusez-moi, où est la gare, s'il vous plaît ? | Excusez-moi already softens the question, but adding s'il vous plaît is the normal polite level with strangers. |
| droite with a rolled Urdu r | a soft throat 'drwat' | The French r is made at the back of the throat, very light. A rolled or English r sounds wrong. |
Practice questions
- The book is ON the table. Complete: Le livre est ___ la table. sous / sur / dans / entre — sur
- 'sous' means: on / under / in front of / between — under
- 'devant' means: behind / in front of / next to / far from — in front of
- 'derrière' means: behind / opposite / above / near — behind
- How do you say 'next to'? à côté de / à gauche / en face de / près de — à côté de
- 'en face de la gare' means: next to the station / opposite the station / behind the station / above the station — opposite the station
- How do you ask 'where is the station, please?' Où est la gare, s'il vous plaît ? / Où la gare, s'il vous plaît ? / Qui est la gare ? / Combien est la gare ? — Où est la gare, s'il vous plaît ?
- 'Tournez à droite' means: Go straight on / Turn right / Stop here / Go back — Turn right
- 'tout droit' means: on the left / straight on / on the right / far away — straight on
- Which sentence asks if the place is far? C'est loin ? / C'est où ? / C'est combien ? / C'est à gauche ? — C'est loin ?
Homework (15 minutes)
1) Listen and repeat all 16 words and the 6 pronunciation drills. 2) Look around your room and write 6 true sentences using sur, sous, dans, devant, derrière, à côté de. 3) Write a small map of your neighbourhood in French: where the shop, the bank and the bus stop are. 4) Record yourself asking the way and then giving the answer: 'Excusez-moi, où est la gare ?' — 'Allez tout droit, puis tournez à droite.'
Lesson 22 of 45 · Part 3 · Food, Shopping & Going Out · See the full A0 → A2 roadmap · Français A0 → A2