B1 · Verb + infinitive · about 4 minutes
Verbs that take both à and de
The same verb, two prepositions, two meanings — as with an English particle.
Do you know this already?
“New to me”: the explanation first, then practice. “Test myself”: 3 short questions – get at least two right and you go straight to the harder exercises.
Words you will need5
They appear in this topic’s examples and exercises and are new at this point on the learning path.
- le débutthe beginning
- accepterto accept
- servirto serve
- la boîtethe box
- premierfirst
Understand
RememberWith these verbs the preposition is half the meaning.
- Signal words
- penser à
- penser de
- commencer par
- finir par
- se décider à
The form
The forms and what they mean
Each row gives the meaning first, then the form in French.
| to think about | penser à |
| to think of (an opinion) | penser de |
| to start doing | commencer à |
| to start by | commencer par |
| to finish doing | finir de |
| to end up doing | finir par |
The rules one by one
The form this topic is about
penser à is thinking about; penser de is an opinion of.
Je pense à toi. / Qu’est-ce que tu penses de ce film ?I am thinking about you. / What do you think of that film?
commencer à starts; commencer par names the first step.
Il commence à pleuvoir. / Commençons par le début.It is starting to rain. / Let us start at the beginning.
finir de stops; finir par ends up doing it after all.
Finis de manger. / Il a fini par accepter.Finish eating. / He ended up agreeing.
décider de decides; se décider à brings itself to it.
J’ai décidé de partir. / Je me suis décidé à lui parler.I decided to leave. / I brought myself to speak to him.
Example sentences
Qu’est-ce que tu penses de sa proposition ?What do you think of his proposal?
Pense à fermer la fenêtre.Remember to close the window.
Il a fini par comprendre.He understood in the end.
1 more example sentences
Ça sert à quoi ? — On s’en sert pour ouvrir les boîtes.What is that for? — You use it to open tins.
The trap English speakers fall into
Watch out
Il a fini de comprendre is nonsense: nobody stops understanding. What is meant is fini par — he got there in the end. English keeps the two apart with different words, finish and end up, so nothing warns you that French uses one verb and lets the preposition carry the difference.
Quick check
A warm-up: 2 questions, answered straight away. They do not count towards your progress.
Practise
3 exercises on this topic. Your answers are checked in the browser; none of them leaves your device.
Now write it yourself4 sentences on this topic, typed and checked instantly.
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Next on the path: 97 · The adjective without its nounBack to the learning path
The full explanation
Read it all · about 1 min
Some verbs take à or de according to the sense, and the preposition is half the meaning. This is not a foreign idea: English does the same work with particles. Think about is not think of, start with is not start to, and end up doing is not finish doing.
Penser à is to think about somebody; penser de is to have an opinion of something — qu'est-ce que tu penses de ce film ?
Commencer à starts an action; commencer par names the first step of a series, which is English start by. Finir de stops; finir par is end up doing it after all.
Décider de is the decision; se décider à is bringing yourself to it. Servir à is to be for a purpose; se servir de is to use. There is no learning these one at a time: learn them in pairs, or learn half of each.
The verbs on this page, in every form: penser · avoir · finir · être · décider · commencer · servir · ouvrir