A prepositional verb is a verb that is followed by a preposition. Many verbs in French are followed by a preposition. Most prepositional verbs in French have similar meanings to the original verbs. However, a new meaning is sometimes obtained when using the prepositional verb.
For example, when the verb “donner” (to give) is followed by the preposition “sur” (on), the prepositional verb “donner sur” means “to face” or “to overlook,” e.g., “La maison donne sur la mer” (The house overlooks the sea).
Examples
Here is a list of some common prepositional verbs in French:
| Verb | Meaning | Example |
| arriver | to arrive | Je vais arriver à Madrid la semaine prochaine. I am going to arrive in Madrid next week. |
| arriver à | to manage to to succeed | Il est arrivé à résoudre le problème hier. He managed to solve the problem yesterday. |
| chercher | to look for to pick up | Il cherche un emploi dans son domaine. He is looking for a job in his field. |
| chercher à | to attempt to try | Tu dois chercher à changer ton plan. You have to try to change your plan. |
| commence | to start | Les cours commencent mercredi prochain. Classes start next Wednesday. |
| commence à | to start (to) | Il a commencé à pleurer quand je le lui ai dit. He started to cry when I told him. |
| commence par | to start by to start with | On commence par se présenter. We start by introducing ourselves. |
| compter | to count | Mon fils sait compter jusqu’à dix. My son can count to ten. |
| compter pour | to count for to be worth | Cela ne compte pour rien dans le calcul. This counts for nothing in the calculation. |
| compter sur | to count on | Vous pouvez compter sur moi pour le faire. You can count on me to do it. |
| croire | to believe to think | Je ne crois pas ce qu’il a dit. I don’t believe what he said. |
| croire à | to believe (in) (something) | Je crois à la tentative honnête qu’il a faite. I believe the honest attempt he made. |
| croire en | to believe in | Je crois en une solution pacifique à cela. I believe in a peaceful solution to this. |
| être | to be | Il est étudiant dans cette université. He is a student at this university. |
| être à | to belong to | Ce document est à moi. This document belongs to me. |
| être pour | to be in favor of | Il est pour la loi et nous sommes contre. He is for the law and we are against it. |
| finir | to finish to complete | Il a fini toute la pizza tout seul. He finished the entire pizza by himself. |
| finir de | to finish to be done with | Il a fini de manger et est parti tout de suite. He finished eating and left right away. |
| finir par | to end up | Elle a fini par refuser l’offre d’emploi. She ended up refusing the job offer. |
| jouer | to play | Les enfants jouent dans le jardin. The children are playing in the garden. |
| jouer de | to play (an instrument) | Il jouait de la guitare quand il était jeune. He used to play the guitar when he was young. |
| jouer à | to play (a sport or game) | Il jouait au tennis à l’école. He used to play tennis at school. |
| parler | to speak to talk | Nous attendons tous qu’il parle. We are all waiting for him to speak. |
| parler à | to talk to | Il voulait parler à sa mère. He wanted to talk to his mother. |
| parler de | to talk about | Je ne veux pas parler de ce sujet maintenant. I don’t want to talk about this subject now. |
| parler pour | to speak for | Il parle pour nous tous sur cette question. He speaks for all of us on this issue. |
| rêver | to dream | Je ne rêve pas beaucoup ces temps-ci. I don’t dream much these days. |
| rêver à | to dream of | J’ai rêvé à ce bruit d’oiseaux. I dreamed of this sound of birds. |
| rêver de | to dream about | J’ai rêvé de lui l’autre jour. I dreamed about him the other day. |
| tenir | to hold | La mère tient son bébé dans ses mains. The mother holds her baby in her hands. |
| tenir à | to want (eagerly) to be attached to | Je tiens à tous vous remercier. I want to thank all of you. |
| tenir de | to take after | Je pense qu’il tient de son père. I think he takes after his father. |
Other lessons in Level VI:
