12 common verbs with the preposition À

Let's discover how to unpick some common yet natural mistakes learners of French students often make. Why? Because they translate directly from English and forget that some verbs are indirect.

Before explaining what it means, the main topic is about 12 verbs which go hand to hand with the preposition À.

Let’s dive in…

When are verbs indirect in French?

Identifying indirect and direct verbs in French is easier than you think: there are ways to spot them to spot them since they involve some grammatical changes.

To begin with, let’s say that indirect verbs are the ones with a preposition. In French, we often have verbs with the preposition “à” and “de”.

What you should remember is it’s not because a verb is direct in English that it will be the same in French and vice versa.

For instance, the verb “to give” in French is indirect while it’s direct in English. Why? There’s no reason or explanation.

This is when you should put yourself into the French brain.

• Il donne une fleur à Julie >>> He gives Julie a flower. (He gives a flower TO Julie) 

Below are the 12 verbs we are going to study together with examples. Remember to pick your favourite ones and learn the others in time to enjoy your learning. just pace yourself, rather than cramming. 

• penser à
• donner quelque chose à
• expliquer quelque chose à quelqu’un
• dire quelque chose à quelqu’un
• dire à quelqu’un que
• assister à (un événement)
• proposer quelque chose à quelqu’un
• répéter quelque chose à quelqu’un
• montrer quelque chose à quelqu’un
• écrire quelque chose à quelqu’un
• téléphoner à quelqu’un
• répondre à quelqu’un

4 everyday verbs with the preposition À

These verbs are the ones we use every day. That’s why we need to memorise they are indirect and because we say or write them - it’s easier to remember they come with a preposition. 

The French verb “penser” which is to think in English is indirect. However, it doesn’t come with the preposition of “about” or “of” but with “à”. You can have a verb or a person after the preposition.

Don’t forget the preposition, especially in the questions like this:

• À quoi pensez-vous Monsieur? >>> What are you thinking about, sir?

Unlike in English, the preposition in questions comes at the beginning of the question and not at the end.

Here’s another very common verb as well: “donner”. In some situations, it’s not obvious that it’s an indirect verb because the pronoun itself has the preposition.

Let’s clarify with the following sentence:

• Il m’a donné un super cadeau >>> He gave (to) me a great gift.

As you can see (or not see), there’s no preposition “à” here. But it is present in the pronoun “m´". Let’s “unveil” the preposition by transforming the example:

• Il a donné un super cadeau à moi* >>> He gave me a great gift.

Note that it’s not proper French. If you change the “moi” with a name or other subjects, it works.

• Il a donné un super cadeau à sa voisine >>> He gave a great gift to his neighbour.

In case you struggle with indirect pronouns, here they are:

• Je >>> me / m’
• Tu >>> te / t’
• Il / elle >>> lui
• Nous >>> nous
• Vous >>> vous
• Il / elle >>> leur

Don’t forget to put them before your indirect verb!

The verb “expliquer” works exactly like the previous one. You won’t notice the preposition with pronouns.

• Bon, je vous l’explique de nouveau >>> Ok, I’ll explain it (to you) again.

“Suggérer” is a similar verb. Let’s play with two sentences where the preposition is obvious and the other one not:

• Je vais suggérer à mon voisin de baisser la musique >>> I’m going to suggest to my neighbour that he turns the music down.
• Je vais lui suggérer de baisser la musique >>> I’m going to suggest to him that he turns the music down.

Therefore, you need to be very attentive to the pronouns because there’s no need to put the preposition “à” since it’s already integrated into the pronouns.

4 French verbs requiring the preposition À

Let’s continue with other French verbs whose translation is not what you may think! They can be “false friends” because they look like English verbs but mean something different.

First, the verb “dire” doesn’t mean urgent but it’s the French verb “to tell”. And it goes with the preposition “à” even if it’s not the case in English. So, you would have something like this:

• Elle lui a dit une blague dingue ! >>> She told her a great joke.

And the version with the preposition would be this one:

• Elle a dit une blague dingue à Claire ! >>> She told Claire a great joke.

Non! The verb “assister” doesn’t mean to assist someone. Indeed, it refers to the verb “attend”. We usually use it for events, meetings, conferences...

• Simon a finalement assisté à la réunion >>> Simon finally came to the meeting.

“Proposer” is not to ask for the hand of someone. It usually expresses an offer, a suggestion… 

• Le chirurgien a proposé au garçon d’accepter la chirurgie >>> The surgeon proposed that the boy accept the surgery.

As a reminder, the preposition “à” requires an agreement with the subject. In other words, you have to adapt it to the gender and number. Let’s the same example in different contexts:

• Le chirurgien a proposé au garçon >>> masculine singular
• Le chirurgien a proposé aux garçons >>> plural
• Le chirurgien a proposé à la fille >>> feminine singular
• Le chirurgien a proposé aux filles >>> plural
• Le chirurgien a proposé à l’enfant >>> with words starting with a vowel or h.

This French verb might be super useful for you if you struggle in French: “répéter”. Don’t forget the “à” or put your pronoun before it like in this illustration:

• Pouvez-vous me répéter cela s’il vous plait ? >>> Can you repeat that to me, please ?

4 indirect verbs with the preposition À.

In this last section, we will pay attention to 2 verbs that follow the same structure in both languages, then 2 verbs that are direct in English while being indirect in French.

The verb “montrer” signifies “to show”. Generally, you show something to someone. Well, it’s the same in French!

• Monique vous montrera les sorties ! >>> Monique will show you the exists. 

Note that in English you show someone something too…Just remember the preposition for your sentences in French.

The following verb is extremely similar. I am talking about the verb “écrire” (to write in English). Oui! You write something to someone but the usual structure in English is “to write somebody something”:

• J’ai commencé à lui écrire une lettre >>> I started to write her a letter. 

There's a “trap” with the French verb “téléphoner”. Why? You would tend to think it’s direct when it’s not! Never forget the preposition or be sure to put the right pronoun in the right place…

Appelle-moi immédiatement. >>> Call me right now. 

The same happens with the verb “répondre”. Indeed, “to answer” in French is indirect and requires the “à”.

• Tu ne me réponds jamais. >>> You never answer me. 

The “me” in French means “to me” even if you can’t see the preposition.

12 verbs that always go with the preposition À

So, we have seen 12 verbs that require the preposition “à” or the pronouns that already include the preposition. Some are similar in English and others are completely different. Try to be in the “French mood or brain” and simply learn the ones in the list as your starting point.

Here's our great line up again: 12 indirect French verbs:

• penser à
• donner quelque chose à
• expliquer quelque chose à quelqu’un
• dire quelque chose à quelqu’un
• dire à quelqu’un que
• assister à (un événement)
• proposer quelque chose à quelqu’un
• répéter quelque chose à quelqu’un
• montrer quelque chose à quelqu’un
• écrire quelque chose à quelqu’un
• téléphoner à quelqu’un
• répondre à quelqu’un

So, tell us the truth? Do you often make this mistake yourself? If yes, with which verbs?

I'm listening . . .