Articles : défini, indéfini, partitif — Explained

French has three types of articles that work differently from English. These small words are essential because they reveal the gender and number of nouns, and they tell you whether you're talking about something specific, something general, or an unspecified quantity. Understanding when and how to use each type prevents you from sounding unnatural in French.

Definite Articles: le, la, les, l'

• Definite articles refer to specific, known things. Use them when you mean "the" in English, but also in many cases where English uses no article at all.
• Masculine singular: le (le chat = the cat)
• Feminine singular: la (la maison = the house)
• Before a vowel or silent h: l' (l'ami = the friend, l'homme = the man)
• Plural for all genders: les (les chats, les maisons, les amis = the cats, the houses, the friends)
• You use the definite article when talking about something specific: J'aime le café (I like coffee in general, or the specific coffee we're discussing). Le prof arrive demain (The teacher arrives tomorrow). Notice that French uses the definite article for general statements and habits, where English often uses no article.