À + Definite Articles: When French Uses Au and Aux

In French, à often means “to” or “at,” while le, la, l’, and les are the different ways of saying “the.”

But when à comes before certain articles, French combines them into a single word. These are called contractions, and unlike English contractions such as “don’t” or “I’m,” they’re not optional.

The good news? There are only two combinations you need to learn.

✦The Rule✦

When à comes before a definite article, here’s what happens:

à + le → au
à + la → à la (no change)
à + l’ → à l’ (no change)
à + les → aux

Only le and les change. The other two stay exactly as they are.

1. À + LE = AU

Let’s say you’re going to the supermarket. You know supermarché is masculine, so you might try à le. But French doesn’t allow à le. Whenever à meets the definite article le, they combine into au.

Je vais à le supermarché. I’m going to the supermarket. ❌ incorrect

Je vais au supermarché. I’m going to the supermarket. à + le → au

You’ll see this everywhere:

Nous sommes au restaurant. We’re at the restaurant. au = à + le restaurant

Elle parle au professeur. She’s talking to the teacher. au = à + le professeur

Il joue au tennis. He plays tennis. au = à + le tennis

Notice that au isn’t limited to places. It also appears with people, activities, and other expressions that use à.

2. À + LA and À + L’ Stay the Same

Now for the easy part: if the article is la or l’, there’s no contraction.

Je vais à la pharmacie. I’m going to the pharmacy. à + la → à la

Elle parle à la directrice. She’s talking to the principal. à + la → à la

The same goes for l’, which replaces le or la before a vowel sound or a silent h.

Nous allons à l’école. We’re going to school. à + l’ → à l’

Il est à l’hôpital. He’s at the hospital. à + l’ → à l’

Elle parle à l’étudiant. She’s talking to the student. à + l’ → à l’

Notice that école is feminine, while hôpital and étudiant are masculine. It doesn’t matter: à l’ works the same way for both genders. Even though hôpital and étudiant are masculine, we don’t use au because their definite article is l’, not le.

3. À + LES = AUX

Our second contraction works with plural nouns. Whether the noun is masculine or feminine, à + les always becomes aux.

Je vais aux magasins. I’m going to the stores. à + les → aux

Le professeur parle aux étudiants. The teacher is talking to the students. aux = à + les étudiants

Elle donne des fleurs aux voisines. She gives flowers to the neighbors. aux = à + les voisines

Nous pensons aux vacances. We’re thinking about the vacation. aux = à + les vacances

Unlike au, which is masculine singular, aux works for both masculine and feminine plurals.

Pronunciation Note

Here’s a nice bonus: au and aux are normally pronounced exactly the same way, with the French o sound. But when aux comes before a vowel sound or a silent h, its final x is usually pronounced like a z that links to the next word.

aux magasins to the stores no linking z sound

aux étudiants to the students (aux-z-étudiants) linking z sound

The spelling stays aux in both cases. The linking sound is a liaison, part of natural French pronunciation, and something you’ve likely encountered before.

Now put it into practice. The À + Definite Articles deck will help you recognize these combinations until choosing the right form becomes automatic.