Three words may be used in French to express “in”:
dans, à, and
en.
Dans means “inside” or “within an enclosed or specific place” and is often used with an indefinite article ( un, une, des):
À + definite article refers to a general location with no specific boundaries and is usually used with a definite article ( le, la, l', les):
- Allons au grand magasin. (Let's go to the department store.)
En is used in the following idiomatic expressions: en ville (downtown/in the city), en prison (in jail).
- Notre famille dîne en ville. (Our family is eating in the city.)
The following list shows other prepositions that are formed by using more than one word:
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à cause de (because of)
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à côté de (next to)
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à droite (to the right)
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à gauche (to the left)
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à partir de (beginning with)
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à peu près (nearly)
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à propos de (about, concerning)
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à travers (across, through)
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afin de (in order to)
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au (en) bas de (at the bottom of)
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au bout de (at the end of)
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au dessous de (below, beneath)
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au lieu de (instead of)
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au milieu de (in the middle of)
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au sujet de (about, concerning)
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au‐dessus de (above, over)
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autour de (around)
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en face de (opposite)
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loin de (far from)
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près de (near)