des (article indéfini)

Indefinite Plural Article Des

Level 1

In French, you almost always need an article before a noun. While English often uses 'bare plurals' (e.g., 'I have books'), French uses des to indicate 'some' or an unspecified number of items.

How It Works

The indefinite plural article des is essential for pluralizing nouns that aren't specific.

1. Basic Usage
Use des whenever you are talking about more than one thing but not all things in that category.
Example: J'ai des chats (I have [some] cats).

2. Pronunciation and Liaison
The 's' in des is usually silent. However, when the next word starts with a vowel or a silent 'h', you must perform a liaison, pronouncing the 's' like a /z/.
Example: des amis (pronounced /de-za-mi/).

3. The Negative Rule
In most negative sentences, des changes to de (or d' before a vowel). This is covered in detail under pas de after negation.
Example: Je n'ai pas de livres (I don't have [any] books).
Exception: This change does not happen with the verb être.

4. Before Adjectives
If a plural adjective comes before the noun, des traditionally changes to de in formal French.
Example: De belles fleurs (Beautiful flowers). In casual speech, many natives still use des here.

Examples (5)

  1. Il y a des enfants dans le parc.

    There are children in the park.

    Word by Word: It there has some children in the park.

    Here, 'des' is used because we are talking about an unspecified number of children.

  2. J'ai acheté des pommes au marché.

    I bought some apples at the market.

    Word by Word: I have bought some apples at the market.

    Since 'pommes' is plural and indefinite, we use 'des'.

  3. Elle a des amis français.

    She has French friends.

    Word by Word: She has some friends French.

    Note the liaison: 'des' is pronounced with a /z/ sound before 'amis'.

  4. Ce sont des erreurs importantes.

    These are important errors.

    Word by Word: These are some errors important.

    Even though 'erreurs' is plural, we use 'des' because they are not specific errors previously mentioned.

  5. Il porte de nouveaux vêtements.

    He is wearing new clothes.

    Word by Word: He wears of new clothes.

    Because the adjective 'nouveaux' comes before the noun, 'des' changes to 'de' in standard French.

Common Mistakes

  • Omitting the article entirely (English influence).

    J'ai voitures.
    J'ai des voitures.

    In English, we can say 'I have cars.' In French, a noun almost always needs an article. You must use 'des' for plural indefinite nouns.

  • Using 'des' in a negative sentence with verbs other than 'être'.

    Je n'ai pas des stylos.
    Je n'ai pas de stylos.

    After a negation like 'pas', 'des' usually turns into 'de'. This is a very common rule to remember for fluency.

  • Confusing 'des' (some) with 'les' (the/all).

    J'aime des chiens.
    J'aime les chiens.

    Use 'les' for generalities (I like dogs in general). Use 'des' for a specific but unspecified group (I have [some] dogs).

How It Connects

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des (article indéfini)Level 1Indefinite Plural Article Des

Learn This First

To understand 'des', learners must first be familiar with the singular indefinite articles 'un' and 'une'. Additionally, knowing the plural definite article 'les' provides a helpful conceptual framework for how French handles pluralization in the article system.

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