A1Unit 10 of the A1 course · « Se repérer en ville »
This unit puts A1 together for real life in town: saying where the post office is, stopping a stranger politely, giving directions and taking the tram, with the little words au, à la and du.
By the end of this unit you can: find your way around town: say where places are, give directions and use the tram and métro.
Going to a place is à, and à le always becomes au. À la and à l' don't change. So the article tells you which one to use.
Start with Pardon, madame or Pardon, monsieur, then ask your question. When you've got the answer, finish with Merci, bonne journée !
À côté de, en face de and au bout de all end in de, and de joins up with le just like à does: de + le = du, de + les = des. De la and de l' stay as they are.
To tell someone what to do, take the vous form of the verb and leave out vous. It's polite as it is, and you can add s'il vous plaît.
With tu, drop tu in the same way. Verbs in -er also lose their final s: tu tournes → tourne ! Aller becomes va ! and prendre becomes prends !
Use en for anything you travel inside: en tram, en bus, en métro, en voiture. Use à for things you sit on, and for your own feet: à vélo, à pied.
Mamie has come all the way from Martinique. This morning she wants to post a card to her friends and buy croissants for breakfast. Zoé says she knows the way.
Tap 🔊 to hear each one, recorded by a native-sounding French voice.
| Listen | French | English |
|---|---|---|
| poste(feminine) | post officeLa poste is the post office. Careful: le poste (masculine) is a job. | |
| mairie(feminine) | town hallIn a big city like Lyon, the main one is called l'hôtel de ville. | |
| place(feminine)la place Bellecour (Place Bellecour) | square | |
| église(feminine) | church | |
| bibliothèque(feminine) | libraryNot a bookshop: that's une librairie. | |
| cinéma(masculine) | cinemaCinema was born in Lyon: the Lumière brothers made their first films there. | |
| école(feminine) | school | |
| marché(masculine) | marketOn Lyon's quai Saint-Antoine, there's a market along the Saône every morning except Monday. | |
| rue(feminine) | street | |
| pont(masculine) | bridgeLyon has two rivers, the Rhône and the Saône, so there are bridges everywhere. |
| Listen | French | English |
|---|---|---|
| pardon, où est… ? | excuse me, where is…?Pardon is the quick, everyday way to stop someone in the street. Add madame or monsieur to be extra polite. | |
| à côté deLa poste est à côté de la banque. (The post office is next to the bank.) | next to | |
| entreentre la poste et l'église (between the post office and the church) | between | |
| au bout deau bout de la rue (at the end of the street) | at the end of | |
| devant | in front ofNo de after it: devant la gare. | |
| derrière | behindNo de after it: derrière l'église. | |
| au coin deau coin de la rue (on the corner of the street) | on the corner of |
| Listen | French | English |
|---|---|---|
| tournez | turnVous tournez is you turn. Drop vous and it's an instruction: Tournez ! | |
| allezAllez tout droit. (Go straight on.) | go | |
| continuez | keep going / carry on | |
| traversezTraversez la place. (Cross the square.) | cross | |
| carrefour(masculine) | crossroads | |
| feu(masculine) | traffic lightPlural: les feux. Au feu means at the lights. | |
| tourne | turn (to a friend)With tu, drop tu, and -er verbs lose their s: tu tournes → tourne ! Aller gives va ! and prendre gives prends ! |
| Listen | French | English |
|---|---|---|
| tram(masculine) | tramShort for tramway. Lyon's tram lines are called T1, T2, T3… | |
| vélo(masculine) | bikeBy bike is à vélo (you'll also hear en vélo). In Lyon you can rent a city bike: un Vélo'v. | |
| arrêt(masculine)l'arrêt de bus (the bus stop) | stop (bus or tram) | |
| station(feminine) | station (métro)A métro stop is une station. A train station is une gare. | |
| ligne(feminine)Prenez la ligne A. (Take line A.) | line | |
| direction… | towards… (the last stop)Lines are signposted by their last stop: ligne A, direction Perrache. | |
| descendez à…Descendez à Bellecour. (Get off at Bellecour.) | get off at… | |
| ticket(masculine) | ticket (bus, tram, métro)For the bus, the tram and the métro, people usually say un ticket. For a train, it's un billet. |
This unit is part of French Ultimate's A1 course: 5 short lessons with an animated video each, speaking and listening practice, a reading and an end-of-unit test.
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