Partitive de

Level 2

De, or d' before a vowel, means some of something.

How It Works

To talk about an amount of something without counting it, put de before the noun. English often leaves out some, but Occitan keeps de.

OccitanEnglish
Vòli de pan.I want some bread.
Bevi d'aiga.I drink water.
Ai d'amics a Tolosa.I have friends in Toulouse.

The same de works with plural nouns that you do not count: d'amics. For one particular thing, use the article instead: Vòli lo pan means I want the bread. To name a container or a measure, put it before de: un veire d'aiga. That pattern has its own entry.

Examples (4)

  1. Mangi de pan.

    I eat bread.

    De introduces an amount that is not counted.

  2. Bevèm d'aiga.

    We drink water.

    De becomes d' before aiga.

  3. Vòles de vin?

    Do you want some wine?

    The question asks about an amount of wine.

  4. Ai d'amics a Tolosa.

    I have friends in Toulouse.

    De also works with plural nouns that are not counted.

How It Connects

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Partitive deLevel 2

Learn This First

The partitive de replaces un and una in the plural and shares its word with the preposition de, so un and una and de come first.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

ded'