bonsoir!pourquoi ¨je vais en ville
- « Back to Q&A Forum
- « Previous questionNext question »
bonsoir!pourquoi ¨je vais en ville
Je vais en ville. -- I go into town.
The "en" connotes a more general location than "à" or "dans".
Another example of the same ilk:
Je suis en classe. -- I am in class.
Je suis dans la classe. -- I am in the classroom.
Je vais au supermarché -- I go to the supermarket.
This is a very specific location you are referring to: hence "à" and not "en". Yet another example:
Je vais venir en voiture. -- I am going to come by car.
Je suis dans la voiture. -- I am in the car.
I hope this helps to elucidate the difference in meaning.
-- Chris (not a native speaker but one who loves infrequently used English words. :)
Bonjour Anastasio!
To complete Chris's answer :)
"en" and "au" mean two different things here:
en = (in)to, in
au = to the, in the
Here are links to our related lessons:
https://progress.lawlessfrench.com/revision/grammar/prepositions-locations-dans-versus-en
I hope that's helpful!
À bientôt !
Don't have an account yet? Join today
Find your French level for FREE
Test your French to the CEFR standard
Find your French level