How to use French partitive articles: du, de la, des

French partitive articles (du, de la, des) are used to express unspecified quantities of something. They're often translated as "some" or "any" in English, but in many cases, they're not directly translated at all. Understanding their usage is crucial for expressing yourself correctly in French.

When to Use Partitive Articles

Partitive articles are used:

1. With uncountable nouns (like water, bread, milk)
2. To indicate an unspecified quantity of a countable noun
3. With abstract nouns (like courage, patience)

Forms of Partitive Articles

• du (masculine singular)
• de la (feminine singular)
• de l' (before vowels or silent h)
• des (plural for both genders)

Examples in Context

Uncountable Nouns

• Je bois du lait. (I drink milk.)
• Elle mange de la soupe. (She eats soup.)

Unspecified Quantity

• Il achète des pommes. (He buys apples.)
• Nous voulons du pain. (We want bread.)

Abstract Nouns

• Il faut de la patience. (You need patience.)
• Ils ont du courage. (They have courage.)

Special Cases

1. After negation, du, de la, and des become de:

   • Je veux du pain. → Je ne veux pas de pain. (I don't want bread.)

2. With specific quantities, use de instead:

   • une tasse de café (a cup of coffee)
   • un kilo de pommes (a kilo of apples)

Remember, partitive articles are used much more frequently in French than their English counterparts. Practice using them in everyday phrases to improve your French fluency.