L'
- « Back to Q&A Forum
- « Previous questionNext question »
MeganKwiziq community member
L'
I still don't understand when do you do l'.
This question relates to:French lesson "Le/la/l' = The (French Definite Articles)"
Asked 7 years ago
Hi Megan,
If the next word starts with the letter a, e, i, o or u, then you contract le or la to l'.
If it starts with an h, but the h is silent/mute/unpronounced when the word is spoken (so in effect the next letter which is a vowel is the real first letter) then again, contract le or la to l'.
It just makes the words a bit easier to say and that's reflected in how they're written.
Does this answer your question?
If the next word starts with the letter a, e, i, o or u, then you contract le or la to l'.
If it starts with an h, but the h is silent/mute/unpronounced when the word is spoken (so in effect the next letter which is a vowel is the real first letter) then again, contract le or la to l'.
It just makes the words a bit easier to say and that's reflected in how they're written.
Does this answer your question?
LauraKwiziq team member
Joakim,
Yes, there are, but you don't contract in front of them: le yaourt, le yurt, etc.
GruffKwiziq team member
You would contract "le" + "y" though (the adverbial pronoun) - again because it's pronounced as a vowel here. "Je l'y rejoins" for example.
Don't have an account yet? Join today
Ask a question
Find your French level for FREE
Test your French to the CEFR standard
Find your French level