de
Static
ORIGIN (TO BE FROM)
of · belonging to
Je suis de Paris
Dynamic
SOURCE (TO COME FROM)
away · from
Je pars de Paris
à
Static
LOCATION (TO BE AT)
at · in
Je suis à Paris
Dynamic
DESTINATION (TO GO TO)
to · toward
Je vais à Paris
Visual Guide
de — STATIC
Origin (TO BE FROM) — "I am from Paris"
à — STATIC
Location (TO BE AT) — "I am in (at) Paris"
de — DYNAMIC
Source (TO COME FROM) — "I come from Paris"
à — DYNAMIC
Destination (TO GO TO) — "I go to Paris"
Gate 1: Comprehension Check
Countries, Cities & Islands
How prepositions change depending on the type of geographic name
| Category |
DE (from) |
À (to / in) |
Example pair |
| Cities & Islands |
de |
à |
de Singapour / à Singapour |
| Fem. country / vowel |
de / d' |
en |
d'Inde / en Inde
de Suisse / en Suisse |
| Masc. country (consonant) |
du |
au |
du Japon / au Japon |
| Plural countries |
des |
aux |
des États-Unis / aux États-Unis |
Click the buttons to see how prepositions change with different geographic types
Countries, Cities & Islands
Exercises
A — Countries, Cities & Islands
Gate 2: Practice Check
Place Nouns (common nouns)
For everyday locations like school, market, office, etc.
Click the buttons to see how prepositions change with different place noun types
C — Mixed (Countries + Places)
Key Insight
à anchors or targets — toward / at (goal or position)
de detaches or originates — from / of (source or separation)
This static–dynamic distinction follows a spatial logic:
à pulls inward ·
de pushes outward
Gate 3: Final Check
🎉 Congratulations! You've completed the learning module on de & à.
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