Kilo Lingo
French grammar Part of Chapter 27

CEFR B1-B2

4 min read

Test yourself (23 questions)

French Adjectives and Nouns with à or de: Rules and List

By Michael McGettrickUpdated 12 October 2026

Adjectives and nouns pick their own linker before an infinitive, just as verbs do. Learn the pair: , , . Here is the whole system on one screen.

àdeWhat do the colours mean?
WordFrenchEnglish
feeling .I'm glad to see you.
readiness .I'm ready to leave.
+ subject .This book is easy to read.
.It's easy to read this book.
noun .He has the right to refuse.
what it is for a washing machine

Quick check

Now use it: three quick questions on the chart above. The full practice is further down.

Pick the right one

0/3

Choose the linker. Is the subject the thing the infinitive acts on?

  1. Ce livre est facile lire.

  2. Il est facile lire ce livre.

  3. Cette idée est difficile comprendre.

Adjectives with de: feelings and certainty

defeminine agreementplural agreementWhat do the colours mean?

If the adjective says how you feel or how sure you are, bet on .

AdjectiveExampleEnglish
.I'm glad to see you.
.Pleased to meet you.
.Sorry to be late.
.He's proud to have succeeded.
.I'm sure I'll win.
.She can do anything.
.You're free to leave.

becomes ' before a vowel. The adjective still agrees while you choose the linker: . - She's glad to come.

takes before a noun too: . - She's proud of her son.

Adjectives with à: ready, used to, first

àplural agreementWhat do the colours mean?

Readiness, habit and rank take .

AdjectiveExampleEnglish
.We're ready to leave.
.I'm used to working late.
.He's determined to succeed.
.He's slow to understand.
.She's the first to arrive.
.He's the last to leave.
.You're the only one who knows.

is a classic English speaker's slip: ready to suggests nothing, and they guess . Watch : the verb is , the adjective .

C'est facile à faire, il est facile de le faire

àdeWhat do the colours mean?

, , and take either linker. Ask one question: is the subject the thing the infinitive acts on?

the book moves to the front, and de becomes à
SubjectFrenchEnglish
the book .This book is easy to read.
the idea .This idea is hard to understand.
, that thing .That's hard to believe.
, nothing .It's easy to read this book.
, nothing .It's hard to sleep here.

With , nothing follows the infinitive: its object is already the subject. With ... , stands for nothing, and the infinitive keeps its own object, or has none.

... + infinitive is on the AQA GCSE French specification at Higher tier, and rules use it constantly:

  • . - It is forbidden to smoke here.
  • . - It is important to arrive on time.

In speech, often replaces this empty . In writing, is the safer choice:

ConversationEssay
  1. C’est facile de le faire.
  2. Il est facile de le faire.

Nouns: nearly always de

àdeWhat do the colours mean?

A noun followed by an infinitive takes . That is close to a rule.

NounExampleEnglish
.He has the right to refuse.
.I don't have time to eat.
.I got the chance to see her.
.She had the courage to leave.
.You have no reason to cry.

The everyday phrases work the same way:

  • . - I feel like sleeping.
  • . - I need to talk.
  • . - I'm afraid of falling.

à for what a thing is for

àWhat do the colours mean?

A noun takes + infinitive when the infinitive says what the thing is for, or what there is to do.

EnglishFrench
a washing machine
a dining room
something to drink
nothing to do
  • ? - Is there anything to eat?

Mistakes English speakers make

WrongRightWhy
.readiness: à
.rank: à
.noun + infinitive:
. stands for nothing:
. replaces
.the adjective takes à

What to do next

  1. Learn five pairs as single items: , , , , .
  2. Turn . into the version, then do the same with and .
  3. verbs with à, de or nothing: but .

Practise: test yourself

Sort into groups

0/8

Before an infinitive, à or de?

Tap a word, then the group it belongs in.

Pick the right one

0/4

Choose the linker. Is the subject the thing the infinitive acts on?

  1. Ce livre est facile lire.

  2. Il est facile lire ce livre.

  3. Cette idée est difficile comprendre.

  4. Il est interdit fumer ici.

Spot the mistake

0/4

Tap the mistake.

Complete the story

0/5

Choose the linker for each gap.

Moving house

Demain, nous déménageons. Je suis prête partir, mais mon fils n'est pas content quitter ses amis. Il a peur être seul. Ma décision est difficile expliquer. Heureusement, dans une nouvelle ville, il y a toujours quelque chose faire.

Gap 1 of 5

Put the words in order

0/2

Put the words in order.

  1. This book is easy to read.

    Your sentence is empty.

  2. It is forbidden to smoke here.

    Your sentence is empty.

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Frequently asked questions

When does a French adjective take and when does it take à before an infinitive?
Adjectives of feeling and certainty take : , , , , , . Adjectives of readiness, habit and rank take à: à, à, à, à, à. ; . The clusters are a memory aid, so learn each adjective with its linker.
What is the difference between and ?
Both mean it is easy to do; the shape of the sentence decides. Use à when the subject is the thing the infinitive acts on, so nothing follows the infinitive: . Use ... when for nothing and the infinitive is the real subject: , .
Which French nouns take before an infinitive?
Almost all of them: , , , , , , , . a ; . A noun takes à when the infinitive says what the thing is for: , , .
Why do English speakers guess the wrong preposition here?
Because English to maps onto both French linkers. Ready to is à, but the right to is , and time to is . An ear trained on English cannot tell them apart, and guessing gets just enough right to stop you noticing. Store the pair: à, .
Is there a difference between and ?
Yes. With one subject, use + infinitive: (I'm glad to come). With a second subject, use + subjunctive: (I'm glad you're coming). The two never combine: is not French.