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Tony H.Kwiziq community member
Hello
Hello, In the lesson, it says that with vivre ot être we are to use dans or nothing. Does that mean we cannot use en. I am confused because there is an example that says "Je suis en class."
This question relates to:French lesson "En vs Dans with locations (French Prepositions of Location)"
Asked 7 years ago
Ron T. Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
Bonsoir Tony,
Here is the excerpt you are discussing:
Avec être (to be) or vivre (to live), you can use either dans la/le OR nothing at all.
Ce magasin est dans l'avenue Jeanne d'Arc.
This shop is on Avenue Jeanne d'Arc.
Ce magasin est avenue Jeanne d'Arc.
This shop is on Avenue Jeanne d'Arc.
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And here is the other excerpt from the lesson:
Dans (+ un/une, le/la/l'/les, des) and en are both used to mean inside/in with respect to locations like town or class.
Note that the meaning changes slightly:
- dans (+ article) is a specific location = in THE ...
- en is more of a general statement = in ...
Je suis en classe
I'm in class
Je suis dans la classe
I'm in the classroom
Je vais en ville
I'm going to town
Il y a une boulangerie dans la ville
There is a bakery in the town
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I do think that the take away here is the location in question: for instance
J'habite au Texas ---> I live in Texas
J'habite à Paris --> I live in Paris
J'habite dans la ville ---> I live in the city (note this takes the preposition «la»
However, I believe the confusion lies with speaking about a location other than where one lives:
Ce magasin est DANS L''avenue Jeanne d'Arc.
This shop is on Avenue Jeanne d'Arc.
Ce magasin EST avenue Jeanne d'Arc.
This shop is on Avenue Jeanne d'Arc.
As can be seen with comparing the sets of examples, there is a difference in the phrase syntaxe when using «dans la, le» or «être».
I hope this has help clarify somewhat this for you, if you are still uncertain about the usage, perhaps one of the Kwiziq team can provide a more clear-cut response.
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