French 2 Quiz: Using Prepositions
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Using PrepositionsQuestion 1 of 8

Marie raconte sa journée à son ami Thomas : « Ce matin, je suis allée acheter des médicaments, puis j'ai rendu visite à ma grand-mère. L'après-midi, j'ai travaillé sur mon projet. »

En choisissant les prépositions correctes, quelle phrase décrit le mieux la matinée de Marie ?

Marie est allée à la pharmacie, puis elle est allée chez sa grand-mère pour lui rendre visite.
Marie est allée dans la pharmacie, puis elle est allée dans sa grand-mère pour lui rendre visite.
Marie est allée chez la pharmacie, puis elle est allée à sa grand-mère pour lui rendre visite.
Marie est allée sur la pharmacie, puis elle est allée de sa grand-mère pour lui rendre visite.
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French 2 Quiz

French 2 Quiz: Using Prepositions

Practice Using Prepositions in French 2 with focused quiz questions that help you check what you know, review explanations, and build confidence with test-style prompts.

What this quiz covers

This quiz focuses on Using Prepositions, giving you a quick way to practice the rules, question types, and explanations that matter most for French 2.

How to use this quiz

Try each quiz question before looking at the correct answer. Use the explanations to review missed ideas, then come back to similar questions until the pattern feels familiar.

All questions

Question 1

Marie raconte sa journée à son ami Thomas : « Ce matin, je suis allée acheter des médicaments, puis j'ai rendu visite à ma grand-mère. L'après-midi, j'ai travaillé sur mon projet. »

En choisissant les prépositions correctes, quelle phrase décrit le mieux la matinée de Marie ?

  1. Marie est allée à la pharmacie, puis elle est allée chez sa grand-mère pour lui rendre visite. (correct answer)
  2. Marie est allée dans la pharmacie, puis elle est allée dans sa grand-mère pour lui rendre visite.
  3. Marie est allée chez la pharmacie, puis elle est allée à sa grand-mère pour lui rendre visite.
  4. Marie est allée sur la pharmacie, puis elle est allée de sa grand-mère pour lui rendre visite.
Explanation: When describing locations and destinations in French, preposition choice is everything — the wrong one can make a sentence nonsensical or ungrammatical. The key rule to remember is that "chez" is used for people's homes or businesses associated with a person, while "à" is used for specific named places or establishments. Answer A is correct because it applies both prepositions perfectly. A pharmacy (la pharmacie) is a named place, so you use "à la pharmacie". A grandmother is a person, so visiting her home requires "chez sa grand-mère". Both choices reflect natural, grammatically correct French. Answer B fails because "dans" means "inside" or "within" and is used for enclosed spaces in a descriptive sense — not as a destination preposition for stores or people. Saying "dans sa grand-mère" is especially absurd, as it would literally mean "inside her grandmother." Answer C swaps the prepositions entirely. "Chez la pharmacie" is wrong because chez is reserved for people (or professions used as stand-ins for people, like chez le médecin), not impersonal establishments. Meanwhile, "à sa grand-mère" is ungrammatical — you go à a place, not à a person. Answer D uses "sur" (on/upon) and "de" (of/from), neither of which function as destination prepositions in this context. These choices are clearly incorrect and serve as traps for students guessing without knowing the rules. Study tip: Memorize this pair — à + place, chez + person. When you see a destination in French, ask yourself: is it a location or a person? That one question will eliminate most preposition errors.

Question 2

Deux amis discutent de leurs projets du week-end. Lucas dit : « Je vais passer samedi   mon cousin, qui habite   un grand appartement   le quartier historique. »

Quelle série de prépositions complète le plus naturellement et correctement la phrase de Lucas, en tenant compte des nuances de chaque préposition ?

  1. à — dans — sur
  2. chez — dans — dans (correct answer)
  3. chez — à — dans
  4. dans — sur — à
Explanation: When choosing prepositions in French, you need to match each one to its specific grammatical and semantic function — they're not interchangeable, even when English might use the same word for all of them. Let's walk through each blank. The first blank follows "passer" with a person as the destination. In French, chez is the correct preposition when visiting someone at their home — it means "at/to someone's place." The second blank introduces where the cousin lives, specifically inside an enclosed space (an apartment). Dans expresses being inside a defined, enclosed space. The third blank situates the apartment within a neighborhood, which is also an enclosed, defined area — so dans is correct again. That confirms B) chez — dans — dans as the right answer. Now let's see why the others fail. A) à — dans — sur uses à for visiting a person, but à is used for cities or fixed locations (like à Paris, à l'école), not for visiting people. Sur in the third blank would imply "on top of" the neighborhood, which makes no spatial sense. C) chez — à — dans gets the first blank right, but uses à before "un grand appartement" — à doesn't work before a modified noun in this context; dans is needed for the interior of a physical space. D) dans — sur — à gets everything wrong: dans cannot precede a person, sur doesn't describe living inside an apartment, and à fails to express location within a neighborhood. Your study tip: memorize chez = people, dans = enclosed spaces. These two are frequently tested together precisely because students confuse them with à.

Question 3

Julien écrit un e-mail : « Je travaille   mon patron depuis trois ans. Le bureau est   centre-ville. Mes dossiers sont classés   mes tiroirs. »

Quelle série de prépositions complète correctement les trois blancs dans l'e-mail de Julien, dans l'ordre où ils apparaissent ?

  1. chez — dans le — sur
  2. à — au — dans
  3. de — en — sur
  4. chez — au — dans (correct answer)
Explanation: When filling in prepositional blanks in French, you need to think about three distinct concepts: relationships with people/employers, locations of places, and locations of objects. Each blank here tests a different one. For the first blank, Julien is describing working with/under his boss. In French, the preposition chez is used to express working for or with a person — it literally conveys "at someone's place" but extends to professional relationships. You'd say je travaille chez mon patron, never à or de with a person in this context. For the second blank, centre-ville (downtown/city center) requires a contracted article. Since centre-ville is masculine, à + le contracts to au: le bureau est au centre-ville. For the third blank, files stored inside drawers use dans, meaning "inside/within a contained space": mes dossiers sont classés dans mes tiroirs. This makes D the correct series: chez — au — dans. Choice A fails because dans le centre-ville is grammatically awkward and less idiomatic than au centre-ville for locations in a city area — French strongly prefers the contracted form here. Choice B fails immediately at the first blank: à mon patron doesn't convey an employment relationship the way chez does. Choice C fails on all three counts — de mon patron implies belonging/origin, en centre-ville lacks the required article, and sur suggests on top of something rather than inside drawers. A good study tip: memorize chez as your go-to preposition for people and businesses (chez le médecin, chez mon patron), and distinguish sur (on a surface) from dans (inside a container) — French exams frequently test this spatial difference.

Question 4

Laquelle des phrases suivantes utilise correctement deux prépositions différentes pour distinguer une action habituelle d'une description de lieu précis ?

  1. Je mange toujours de mes parents le dimanche ; leur maison est dans la rue des Lilas, numéro douze.
  2. Je mange toujours dans mes parents le dimanche ; leur maison est sur la rue des Lilas, numéro douze.
  3. Je mange toujours à mes parents le dimanche ; leur maison est chez la rue des Lilas, numéro douze.
  4. Je mange toujours chez mes parents le dimanche ; leur maison est dans la rue des Lilas, numéro douze. (correct answer)
Explanation: When learning French prepositions, one of the trickiest areas is knowing which preposition to use for expressing location relative to people or places. This question tests two specific prepositions: one for "at someone's home" and one for physical location within a street or neighborhood. The key distinction here is between chez and dans. Chez means "at the home/place of" a person, so it always precedes a person or group — chez mes parents means "at my parents' house." It describes a habitual social action tied to someone's residence. Dans means "in" or "inside" a physical space — dans la rue des Lilas correctly places a house on/in a street, which is the standard French way to describe an address location. Answer D is correct because it uses both prepositions appropriately: chez mes parents for the habitual Sunday dinner (an action tied to a person's home), and dans la rue des Lilas for the precise street address. Answer A uses de mes parents, which is a possessive structure, not a locative one — it doesn't express "at their home" at all. Answer B misuses dans mes parents, which is nonsensical because dans requires a physical place, not a person. It also incorrectly uses sur la rue, which is an anglicism (influenced by English "on the street") — French uses dans la rue, not sur. Answer C uses à mes parents, which doesn't carry the meaning of "at someone's home," and chez la rue is completely wrong since chez must precede a person, not a street. Remember: chez = at someone's place (person follows), dans la rue = on the street (standard French address formula). Avoid sur la rue — that's a common English interference error.

Question 5

Un professeur demande à ses étudiants de traduire la phrase suivante en français : « I am going to the doctor's office, which is located in the new building downtown. » Laquelle des traductions suivantes est la plus correcte ?

  1. Je vais au médecin, dont le cabinet se trouve chez le nouveau bâtiment dans le centre-ville.
  2. Je vais à le médecin, dont le cabinet se trouve sur le nouveau bâtiment au centre-ville.
  3. Je vais chez le médecin, dont le cabinet se trouve dans le nouveau bâtiment au centre-ville. (correct answer)
  4. Je vais dans le médecin, dont le cabinet se trouve à le nouveau bâtiment au centre-ville.
Explanation: When translating "going to a place" in French, you need to match the preposition to the type of destination — this is one of the trickiest areas for English speakers because French makes distinctions that English ignores. For visiting a professional (doctor, dentist, lawyer, etc.), French uses chez, which conveys "at someone's place/practice." So "going to the doctor's office" becomes aller chez le médecin. Additionally, the relative pronoun dont is correct here because it replaces a complement introduced by de — le cabinet de qui → dont le cabinet. Finally, for a location inside a building, French uses dans, making dans le nouveau bâtiment the right choice. This makes C the correct translation. Looking at the distractors: A uses au médecin (a contracted form of à + le), which is grammatically odd here — à works for places like cities or countries, not for visiting professionals. It also uses chez le nouveau bâtiment, which is completely wrong because chez applies to people or businesses, never physical structures. B commits two errors: à le médecin is a glaring grammatical mistake because à + le must always contract to au, and sur le nouveau bâtiment means "on top of the building," which makes no sense in context. D uses dans le médecin, which literally means "inside the doctor" — a nonsensical construction — and à le nouveau bâtiment again fails to contract properly. A handy rule to remember: chez = people/professionals, dans = inside a space, and à + le always contracts to au. Memorize these three together and you'll avoid the most common preposition traps on this exam.

Question 6

Paul décrit son appartement : « Mon appartement est petit mais bien organisé. Mes livres sont rangés   les étagères. Mon ordinateur est posé   mon bureau. Et ma veste est accrochée   la porte. »

Quelle combinaison de prépositions complète correctement les trois descriptions de localisation dans l'appartement de Paul ?

  1. sur — dans — de
  2. dans — sur — sur
  3. sur — sur — à (correct answer)
  4. à — à — dans
Explanation: Questions about spatial prepositions in French test your ability to match the right preposition to the physical relationship between an object and its location. The key is visualizing how something is positioned — resting on a surface, hanging on something, or existing inside something. In Paul's apartment, three objects need precise placement. His books are rangés sur les étagères — "arranged on the shelves." In French, sur expresses contact with a surface, and shelves are exactly that: a flat surface things rest on. His computer is posé sur son bureau — "placed on his desk." Again, the laptop sits on top of a flat surface, so sur is correct a second time. Finally, his jacket is accrochée à la porte — "hung on the door." The preposition à is used here because the jacket is attached or hooked onto the door, not resting on a surface. This makes C (sur — sur — à) the correct combination. Choice A fails because de doesn't indicate location at all — it signals possession or origin, not where something is placed. Choice B gets the desk right with sur but incorrectly uses dans for the shelves — dans means "inside" (like inside a box), which doesn't apply to open shelving. It also uses sur for the jacket, but you don't hang something on top of a door; you hang it to it. Choice D misuses à for both the books and desk, and dans for the jacket, none of which match the physical relationships described. A helpful tip: when memorizing French prepositions, always pair them with a vivid image — sur = surface contact, dans = enclosed inside, à = attached or connected to something.

Question 7

Camille écrit une carte postale à sa famille : « Je suis arrivée hier. Mon hôtel est situé   le bord de la falaise, avec une vue magnifique. Chaque matin, je prends mon café   la terrasse. L'après-midi, je me promène   la vieille ville. »

Quelle combinaison de prépositions complète correctement les trois espaces dans la carte postale de Camille, en respectant les distinctions spatiales précises ?

  1. dans — sur — dans
  2. sur — sur — dans (correct answer)
  3. sur — dans — sur
  4. à — à — dans
Explanation: When dealing with French prepositions of location, the key is matching each preposition to the precise spatial relationship being described. French distinguishes carefully between sur (on a surface or edge), dans (enclosed within a space), and à (a general, less specific location). Let's walk through each blank in Camille's postcard. First, the hotel is situated on the edge of a cliff — "le bord de la falaise." Since "bord" implies a surface or rim, sur is correct (sur le bord). Second, she takes her coffee on the terrace — a flat, open surface you sit upon, so again sur applies (sur la terrasse). Third, she strolls through the old town — a contained, enclosed urban space you move within, making dans the right choice (dans la vieille ville). This gives you sur — sur — dans, which is answer B. Answer A (dans — sur — dans) fails at the first blank: you don't say "dans le bord" because a cliff's edge is a surface, not an enclosed container. Answer C (sur — dans — sur) mishandles the second and third blanks — "dans la terrasse" wrongly treats the terrace as a closed interior, and "sur la vieille ville" sounds like you're hovering above the town rather than walking through it. Answer D (à — à — dans) uses à for the first two blanks, which is too vague; à works for cities (à Paris) but not for specific surfaces like a cliff's edge or a terrace. A useful tip: ask yourself whether the location is a surface (→ sur), an enclosed space (→ dans), or just a general point (→ à). That three-way test will serve you well across many preposition questions.

Question 8

Un étudiant veut dire que son livre est posé sur la table qui se trouve à l'intérieur de la bibliothèque. Quelle phrase exprime correctement ces deux informations de localisation en une seule phrase ?

  1. Mon livre est sur la table dans la bibliothèque. (correct answer)
  2. Mon livre est dans la table à la bibliothèque.
  3. Mon livre est à la table sur la bibliothèque.
  4. Mon livre est chez la table de la bibliothèque.
Explanation: When expressing two simultaneous locations in French, you need to stack prepositions in logical order, matching each preposition to the spatial relationship it describes. Ask yourself: what is the relationship between the book and the table? And between the table and the library? The book rests on top of the table — that calls for sur (on). The table is located inside the library — that calls for dans (in/inside). Chaining these two correctly gives you "Mon livre est sur la table dans la bibliothèque" — option A — which clearly communicates both pieces of spatial information in natural French. Option B fails because dans la table means "inside the table" (as if the book were embedded in the table's material), which makes no physical sense here. Swapping sur and dans completely changes — and distorts — the meaning. Option C commits the opposite spatial error: à la table is used for activities performed at a table (like sitting at a dinner table), not for an object resting on it, and sur la bibliothèque would mean the book is on top of the bookshelf's exterior, not inside the building. Option D uses chez, which refers to someone's home or a person's place (e.g., chez Marie) — it cannot be used with furniture or buildings in this context. A useful tip: in French, prepositions are not interchangeable — each one encodes a precise spatial relationship. When you see a localization question, map out the physical relationship first (on, in, at, near), then pick the preposition that matches. Memorize the core trio: sur (on), dans (inside), à (at/to).