French Contracted Articles: Du, Des, Au, Aux Explained

Contracted articles in French are a combination of prepositions and definite articles. Here's a guide to their use and form:

"du" = "de" + "le"

• Use: With masculine singular nouns to denote possession or belonging.
• New Example: "Je reviens du marché." (I'm coming back from the market.)

"des" = "de" + "les"

• Use: With plural nouns of any gender to express an undefined quantity or possession.
• New Example: "Nous parlons des films récents." (We are talking about recent movies.)

"au" = "à" + "le"

• Use: With masculine singular nouns to indicate location or movement towards a place.
• New Example: "Nous allons au théâtre ce soir." (We are going to the theater tonight.)

"aux" = "à" + "les"

• Use: With plural nouns of any gender to describe a location or a movement towards places.
• New Example: "Les clés sont aux enfants." (The keys belong to the children.)

Note: "à la" and "de la" remain separate and do not form contractions.

Typical phrases with "de" or "à" + article:

• "du" for masculine singular: "L'odeur du pain frais." (The smell of fresh bread.)
• "de la" for feminine singular: "Près de la fenêtre." (Near the window.)
• "au" for masculine singular: "Le goût au chocolat." (The taste of chocolate.)
• "aux" for plural: "Les livres aux couvertures colorées." (The books with colorful covers.)

Contracting is not optional; it is a grammatical rule when the preposition and article are next to each other.

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