Je voudrais du café, de la salade et de l'eau, s'il vous plaît. Je ne veux pas de viande. J'aime le café en général, mais là je bois du thé.
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GrammarA1partitivearticles
Partitive articles: du, de la, des
Les articles partitifs
A1fr24 min
What you'll learn
- Express an unspecified amount
- Choose between the three article systems
- Apply the negative/quantity de rule
Tips for this lesson
- du/de la/des = 'some' — an unspecified amount, usually of food/drink.
- j'aime LE café (in general) vs je bois DU café (some coffee) — same word, different article, different meaning.
- After negation or a quantity word (beaucoup de...), du/de la/des all become de.
Step 1 of 6
1Reading
In context
Read. Notice du/de la/de l' express 'some' — an amount, not the whole category.
Step 2 of 6
2The pattern
The pattern — the third article system
You now know three article systems. The partitive means 'some' — an unspecified quantity.
You've already met the definite article (le/la/les — the specific thing, or a generality) and the indefinite article (un/une/des — one/some countable item). Now meet the partitive: du, de la, de l' (before a vowel), des — meaning "some", an unspecified amount of something uncountable, usually food or drink. The classic contrast: "j'aime le café" (I like coffee, as a category — definite) vs "je bois du café" (I'm drinking some coffee, right now — partitive). One more rule you already half-know from negation (A1-07): after a negative or a quantity word like beaucoup de, du/de la/des all collapse to plain de.
| Masc. | Fem. | Before vowel | After negative/quantity |
|---|---|---|---|
| du | de la | de l' | de (pas de, beaucoup de, un peu de) |
| System | Job | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Definite | the specific thing / a generality | j'aime le café |
| Indefinite | one / a countable item | je voudrais un café |
| Partitive | some / an uncountable amount | je bois du café |
Je voudrais du pain.
I'd like some bread.
Uncountable, unspecified amount → partitive.
Elle mange de la salade.
She's eating some salad.
Nous buvons de l'eau.
We're drinking some water.
de l' before the vowel in eau.
Il n'y a pas de lait.
There's no milk.
Negative → du becomes plain de.
Erreurs fréquentes
- J'aime du café.J'aime le café.
Liking something IN GENERAL always takes the definite article (le), never the partitive.
- Je bois le café.Je bois du café.
Drinking/eating SOME of something right now takes the partitive (du), not the definite.
- Beaucoup du café.Beaucoup de café.
After quantity words (beaucoup de, un peu de, assez de), du/de la/des always become plain de.
Exceptions & à retenir
Some verbs almost always pair with the partitive
manger, boire, prendre + food/drink usually take the partitive by default (je mange du pain, je bois de l'eau) since you're rarely eating/drinking 'the whole category'.
Abstract nouns can take the partitive too
avoir du courage (to have some courage), faire du sport (to do some sport) — the partitive isn't only for food; it applies to any uncountable noun.
This completes the A1 article system
You now have all three: definite (le/la/les), indefinite (un/une/des), partitive (du/de la/des). Most article mistakes at this level come from mixing up definite and partitive — review A1-05 alongside this lesson.
Astuces & mémo
- Ask: am I talking about the whole category (le/la/les) or a portion of it right now (du/de la/des)?
- de l' works for both genders before a vowel — same shortcut as the definite article's l'.
- The negative/quantity de rule you learned for indefinite articles (A1-07) is exactly the same rule for partitive articles — one rule, two contexts.
Step 3 of 6
3Q&A drill
Which article system?
Match each sentence to the article type it uses.
- Q1J'aime le chocolat.A____________
- Q2Je voudrais un chocolat chaud.A____________
- Q3Je bois du chocolat chaud.A____________
- Q4Il n'y a pas de chocolat.A____________
Step 4 of 6
4Fill the blanks
Guided practice — choose the article
Choose le/la, un/une, du/de la/de l', or de for each blank.
Example
Je voudrais (1) café.
→ Je voudrais du café.
Exercice
J'aime (1) musique classique.
Exercice
Elle boit (2) eau.
Exercice
Il n'y a pas (3) lait.
Exercice
Je voudrais (4) pomme.
Answer pool — drag onto a blank (or tap to fill the next one)
Next empty blank: 1
Step 5 of 6
5Word order
Build the sentence
Put the words in the correct order.
Example
voudraisjeducafé→Je voudrais du café.
- Sentence 1Tap the words below to build the sentence.
- Sentence 2Tap the words below to build the sentence.
- Sentence 3Tap the words below to build the sentence.
- Sentence 4Tap the words below to build the sentence.
Step 6 of 6
6Speak freely
Produce it
Order a meal using partitive articles, then say what you like in general using definite articles.
Ex.Je voudrais du poisson, de la salade et de l'eau, s'il vous plaît. En général, j'aime le poisson mais je n'aime pas beaucoup de légumes.
- 1.Commandez un repas avec des articles partitifs (du/de la/de l').
- 2.Qu'est-ce que vous aimez en général ? (le/la/les)
- 3.Qu'est-ce qu'il n'y a pas dans votre frigo ?