# Partitives and Quantities

https://langs123.com/en/french/nom-determinants/partitifs-quantites/
CEFR A1–A2 · 2026-10-24 · CC BY 4.0, langs123 contributors (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

> **Du**, **de la** and **de l’** name an amount that is not counted; **beaucoup de** and **un kilo de** say how much. After a quantity word or a measure comes **de** alone, with no article: beaucoup **de** pain, un kilo **de** pommes

## Summary

| Point | Rule | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Form | **du** / **de la** / **de l’** / **des** + noun | Je mange **du** pain. / Il boit de l’eau. | I eat bread. / He drinks water. |
| Ordering | **Je voudrais** + **du**, **de la**, **de l’** | Je voudrais de l’eau, s’il vous plaît. | I'd like some water, please. |
| Counted or not | **du**, **de la**: what is not counted; **un**, **une**: what is counted | Je mange **de la** salade. / Je mange **une** pomme. | I eat salad. / I eat an apple. |
| Quantity | **beaucoup de** / **un peu de** / **trop de** / **assez de** + noun, no article | J’ai **beaucoup de** travail. | I have a lot of work. |
| Measure | **un kilo de** / **un litre de** / **une bouteille de** / **un verre de** + noun | Une bouteille d’eau, s’il vous plaît. | A bottle of water, please. |
| Negation | **du** / **de la** / **des** / **un** / **une** → **pas de** | Je n’ai **pas de** pain. | I don't have any bread. |
| Liking, disliking | **aimer**, **adorer**, **détester**: **le**, **la**, **les** | J’aime **le** café. | I like coffee. |
| Peu or un peu | **peu de**: hardly any; **un peu de**: a small amount | Il y a **peu de** lait. / Il y a **un peu de** lait. | There is hardly any milk. / There is a little milk. |
| Plus, jamais | **ne** … **plus de**, **ne** … **jamais de** + noun | Il n’y a **plus de** lait. | There is no more milk. |
| Trap | the partitive never drops: a noun for a substance always has an article | Je bois de l’eau. | I drink water. |
| Trap | after **beaucoup**, **trop**…: **de**, never **du** or **des** | Il y a **trop de** bruit. | There is too much noise. |

## Overview

- The partitive (**du**, **de la**, **de l’**) names an amount that is not counted; **un** and **une** count one thing. Je mange **du** riz. / Je mange **une** pomme. (I eat rice. / I eat an apple.)
- After a quantity word or a measure comes **de** (**d’** before a vowel), and the noun has no article. Elle mange **beaucoup de** fruits. / Un litre d’eau. (She eats a lot of fruit. / A litre of water.)
- For **le**, **la**, **un**, **une** and **des**, see Articles.
- To tell whether a noun is masculine or feminine, see Noun Gender.

## Form: the partitive

| The noun | Form | Example |
| --- | --- | --- |
| masculine | **du** | du pain |
| feminine | **de la** | de la soupe |
| before a vowel or a mute h | **de l’** | de l’eau |
| plural | **des** | des légumes |

- The partitive always stands before the noun: it never drops. Je bois **du** thé. / Elle prend **de la** confiture. (I drink tea. / She has jam.)
- **Des** is also the plural of **un** and **une**: see Articles.
- To replace a partitive with **en**, see The Pronouns y and en.

## Use: the partitive

| Use | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Ordering, asking | Je voudrais **du** pain, s’il vous plaît. / Je voudrais de l’eau. | I'd like some bread, please. / I'd like some water. |
| Food and drink | Je mange **de la** soupe. / Il boit **du** lait. | I eat soup. / He drinks milk. |
| A material | Il y a **du** sable ici. / Elle achète **de la** laine. | There is sand here. / She buys wool. |
| The weather | Il y a **du** soleil. / Il y a **du** vent. | It is sunny. / It is windy. |
| An idea that is not counted | J’ai **du** temps. / Elle a **de la** chance. | I have time. / She is lucky. |
| An activity with faire | Je fais **du** sport. / Elle fait **de la** musique. | I do sport. / She plays music. |

- With **aimer**, **adorer**, **détester** and **préférer**, you speak of a thing in general: the article is definite. J’aime **le** café. / Elle déteste **les** oignons. (I like coffee. / She hates onions.)
- For the general and the specific use of **le**, **la**, **les**, see Articles.

## Form: quantity words

| Form | Meaning | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| **beaucoup de** + noun | a large amount | Il mange **beaucoup de** pain. / Elle a beaucoup d’amis. | He eats a lot of bread. / She has a lot of friends. |
| **un peu de** + uncountable noun | a small amount | Je prends **un peu de** lait. / Il y a un peu d’eau. | I take a little milk. / There is a little water. |
| **trop de** + noun | more than is needed | Il y a **trop de** bruit. / Tu as trop d’idées. | There is too much noise. / You have too many ideas. |
| **assez de** + noun | as much as is needed | Nous avons **assez de** chaises. / Elle a assez d’argent. | We have enough chairs. / She has enough money. |
| **peu de** + noun | hardly any: there is too little | Il a peu d’amis. / Il y a **peu de** neige. | He has few friends. / There is little snow. |
| **plus de** / **moins de** + noun | more, a smaller amount | Je veux **plus de** sel. / Il y a **moins de** voitures. | I want more salt. / There are fewer cars. |
| **quelques** / **plusieurs** + plural noun | a few; more than two | J’ai **quelques** amis ici. / Il a **plusieurs** frères. | I have a few friends here. / He has several brothers. |

- After **beaucoup de**, the verb agrees with the noun. Beaucoup d’enfants **jouent** ici. / Beaucoup de pain **reste**. (Many children play here. / A lot of bread is left.)
- To ask about an amount with **combien de**, see Questions.
- To compare amounts (**plus de** … **que**, **autant de**), see Comparatives and Superlatives.

## Form: measures and containers

| Measure | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Weight and volume | Je voudrais **un kilo de** pommes. / Elle boit un litre d’eau par jour. | I'd like a kilo of apples. / She drinks a litre of water a day. |
| Containers | Une bouteille d’eau, s’il vous plaît. / Un **verre de** vin. / Une **tasse de** thé. | A bottle of water, please. / A glass of wine. / A cup of tea. |
| Packs and portions | Un **paquet de** riz. / Une **boîte de** thon. / Une **tranche de** jambon. | A packet of rice. / A tin of tuna. / A slice of ham. |
| Exact amounts | Cinq cents **grammes de** farine. / Une douzaine d’œufs. | Five hundred grams of flour. / A dozen eggs. |

- The measure is a noun: after a number it takes the plural, and the noun that follows stays as it is. Deux **kilos de** pommes. / Trois bouteilles d’eau. (Two kilos of apples. / Three bottles of water.)
- For numbers, see Numbers.

## Form: negation

| Form | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **ne** **…** **pas de** + noun | Je n’ai **pas de** pain. / Il ne mange **pas de** viande. / Nous n’avons pas d’eau. | I have no bread. / He eats no meat. / We have no water. |
| **ne** **…** **plus de** / **ne** **…** **jamais de** + noun | Il n’y a **plus de** lait. / Elle ne boit **jamais de** café. | There is no more milk. / She never drinks coffee. |
| **ce n’est pas** + **du** / **de la** / **de l’** / **des** + noun | Ce n’est pas **du** café, c’est du thé. / Ce ne sont pas **des** frites. | It is not coffee, it is tea. / They are not chips. |
| **sans** + noun | Un café **sans** sucre. / Un thé **sans** lait. | A coffee without sugar. / A tea without milk. |

- After **ne** … **pas**, **du**, **de la**, **de l’**, **des**, **un** and **une** become **de** (**d’** before a vowel). Elle a **une** voiture. / Elle n’a pas **de** voiture. (She has a car. / She has no car.)
- The definite article does not change after **ne** … **pas**. Je n’aime pas **le** café. / Il n’a pas **les** clés. (I don't like coffee. / He doesn't have the keys.)
- For the place of **ne** … **pas** and the other negations, see Negation.

## Typical errors

| ✗ | ✓ |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Je mange pain. | Je mange **du** pain. | a noun for a substance always has an article: **du** pain |
| Je bois du eau. | Je bois de l’eau. | before a vowel, **de l’**: **de l’eau** |
| Je mange du pomme. | Je mange **une** pomme. | a fruit you count takes **un** or **une**, not **du** |
| Je n’ai pas du pain. | Je n’ai **pas de** pain. | after **ne** … **pas**, **du** becomes **de** |
| Il y a beaucoup du monde. | Il y a **beaucoup de** monde. | after **beaucoup**, **de** with no article |
| Elle a beaucoup des amis. | Elle a beaucoup d’amis. | **des** does not follow **beaucoup**: **beaucoup d’amis** |
| Une bouteille de l’eau, s’il vous plaît. | Une bouteille d’eau, s’il vous plaît. | after a measure, **de** with no article |
| Un bouteille d’eau. | **Une** bouteille d’eau. | **bouteille** is feminine: **une bouteille** |
| J’aime du café. | J’aime **le** café. | after **aimer**, you speak of coffee in general: **le** |
| Ce n’est pas de café. | Ce n’est pas **du** café. | after **ce n’est pas**, the partitive stays: **du** café |