de + lo = del

Del and Dels

Level 1

De and lo join into del, and de and los join into dels.

How It Works

Two small words become one: de + lo = del, and de + los = dels. You must write the joined form.

Words	Written	Example
de + lo	del	lo libre del professor (the teacher's book)
de + los	dels	las cadièras dels dròlles (the children's chairs)
de + la	de la	la pòrta de la cosina (the kitchen door)
de + l'	de l'	la clau de l'ostal (the house key)

Only lo and los join. Before a vowel, lo becomes l', and then de stays apart: de l'ostal, not del ostal.

Some places use dal or dau instead of del. You can read them, but this course writes del.

Aquò es lo libre del professor.
This is the teacher's book.
Del professor: de + lo.
Lo nom del gat es Minet.
The cat's name is Minet.
Del gat: de + lo again.
Las cadièras dels dròlles son blavas.
The children's chairs are blue.
Dels dròlles: de + los.
La maire del dròlle demòra a Tolosa.
The child's mother lives in Toulouse.
Del dròlle shows who the mother belongs to.
Aquò es la clau de l'ostal.
This is the house key.
De l'ostal: nothing joins before l'.

Not joining de and lo
Aquò es lo libre de lo professor.
Aquò es lo libre del professor.
De and lo always join into del.
Joining before a vowel
Aquò es la clau del ostal.
Aquò es la clau de l'ostal.
Before a vowel, lo becomes l', and then de stays apart.

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

de + lo = delLevel 1Del and Dels

Del and dels are de merged with lo and los, so de and the contraction al come first.

Patterns that build on this one.

deldelsdelolos

Poppy, your AI tutor, writes Occitan lessons at your level. Tap any grammar point in a lesson to see its full explanation.