place

There are many different ways to translate the English word “place” into French. Here are some words that can be used to mean “place” in French, along with examples of how to use them.

un endroit – a place, a spot

  • au bon endroit – in the right place
  • un endroit calme – a quiet place
  • à quel endroit ? – where?

un lieu – a place

  • un lieu de rendez-vous – a meeting place
  • un lieu de culte – a place of worship
  • mettre quelque chose au lieu sûr – to put something in a safe place

une place – room, a space, a seat

  • avoir de la place – to have room/space (for something)
  • il reste une place en première – there is one seat left in first class
  • j’ai eu une place gratuite – I got a free seat
  • garde-moi ma place – keep my place for me (in a queue)
  • payer sa place – to pay for one’s ticket (cinema, theatre)

NOTE

The French noun “une place” does NOT usually mean a place. It means a public square, as in Place de la Concorde, or Place Vendôme, or Place des Vosges, in Paris.

un emplacement – a site, a position, a place

  • l’emplacement d’un futur centre commercial – the site of a future shopping centre
  • ces bornes marquent l’emplacement d’un temple romain dédié à Esculape – these markers mark the place formerly occupied by a Roman temple dedicated to Aesculapius.

un local – a place

  • ils ont un local pour répéter – they have a place where they can rehearse
  • les scouts ont besoin d’un local – the scouts need a place to meet

Don’t miss new articles!

Get 1 email a week with new articles about French

We don’t spam! Read more in our privacy policy

Similar Posts

  • besoin

    The French word “besoin” is a noun that translates to “need” in English. It is commonly used to express necessity or desire for something. Basic Meaning of “Besoin” The word “besoin” is mostly used to indicate that someone needs something or has a requirement. The typical structure for expressing need in French is: “Avoir besoin…

  • shortened words

    French speakers often use shortened forms of words in casual conversation. These abbreviations, or apocopes, are especially common in informal speech and writing. They are usually formed by dropping one or more syllables from the end of a word. Some have become so familiar that they are now widely accepted, even outside informal settings. Here…

  • Me during my French exam wondering what is the gender of a washing machine

    Do you feel like the little girl in this meme? Never knowing the gender of a noun in French? There is in fact a logical reason for the gender of a washing machine in French. A washing machine is a “lave-linge” in French. That word is made up of two individual words: “lave” which comes…

  • cheval, chevaux

    In modern French, most nouns and adjectives ending in -al form their plural in -aux. This pattern is highly productive and applies to a large majority of common words. There are, however, a small number of well established exceptions, mainly nouns, and a very limited set of adjectives that take a regular -s plural instead….

  • Irregular verbs update

    The article with the list of important irregular verbs in French has just been updated. New information has been added. Errors have been corrected. If you haven’t already read it, it’s worth checking out. I suggest you memorise at least the first nine (9) verbs on the list. These are être, avoir, faire, aller, venir,…

  • hearing plurals

    In standard spoken French, most plural noun endings are silent. The written plural -s or -x is usually not pronounced, which means that many singular and plural forms sound identical. For example, livre and livres are pronounced the same in isolation. As a result, listeners rely on surrounding grammatical markers rather than the noun itself…