The French translation for the English word about is rarely a single, direct equivalent. That's why mastering this versatile preposition requires understanding whether you are discussing a topic, estimating a quantity, indicating location, or describing a relationship. On the flip side, depending entirely on context, it translates primarily as à propos de, sur, environ, vers, or de. This guide breaks down every major usage with clear examples to help you choose the right word instinctively Easy to understand, harder to ignore. No workaround needed..
The Core Translations: Topic and Subject Matter
When about indicates the subject of a conversation, thought, book, or film, French offers two main structures. The choice often depends on the verb preceding it.
Using À propos de
This is the most standard, slightly formal way to say "on the subject of" or "concerning." It works with nouns and verbs like parler (to speak), penser (to think), écrire (to write), and savoir (to know).
- Nous avons parlé à propos de vos vacances. (We spoke about your vacation.)
- J’ai lu un article à propos de l’économie. (I read an article about the economy.)
- Qu’est-ce que tu penses à propos de ce film ? (What do you think about that movie?)
Grammar Note: If the object is a pronoun (it, him, them), à propos de contracts with the stressed pronouns (moi, toi, lui, elle, nous, vous, eux, elles).
- Il a parlé à propos de moi. (He spoke about me.)
- Nous discutons à propos de cela. (We are discussing about that.)
Using Sur
Sur (literally "on") is extremely common in modern, spoken French when referring to the content of a medium—a book, a report, a documentary, a conference, or a website. It implies "covering the topic of."
- C’est un documentaire sur la Seconde Guerre mondiale. (It’s a documentary about World War II.)
- Il a écrit un livre sur les chats. (He wrote a book about cats.)
- J’ai vu un reportage sur la pollution. (I saw a report about pollution.)
Key Distinction: You generally parlez à propos de something (action of speaking), but a book or film est sur something (static content) Practical, not theoretical..
Expressing Approximation: Time, Quantity, and Numbers
When about modifies a number, a time, a price, or a quantity, the go-to word is environ. It sits directly before the number or noun phrase.
- Il est environ midi. (It is about noon.)
- Ça coûte environ cinquante euros. (It costs about fifty euros.)
- Nous y sommes restés environ une heure. (We stayed there about an hour.)
- Il y avait environ cent personnes. (There were about a hundred people.)
Common Alternatives for Approximation
While environ is the workhorse, register and nuance offer alternatives:
- Vers (towards/around): Used specifically for time approximations. It suggests a window around that hour.
- Je passerai vers 18h. (I’ll stop by around 6 PM.)
- À peu près (roughly/nearly): Slightly more colloquial than environ. Interchangeable in most quantity contexts.
- C’est à peu près la même chose. (It’s about the same thing.)
- Dans les (in the region of): Very colloquial, used for prices, ages, or temperatures.
- La voiture coûte dans les 10 000 euros. (The car costs in the ballpark of 10,000 euros.)
- Il a dans les 30 ans. (He’s about 30 years old.)
The "On the Verge Of" Construction: Être sur le point de
A distinct and high-frequency usage of about in English is the immediate future tense: "I am about to leave." French does not use a preposition here. Instead, it uses a fixed verbal phrase: être sur le point de + infinitive.
- Je suis sur le point de partir. (I am about to leave.)
- L’avion est sur le point de décoller. (The plane is about to take off.)
- Nous étions sur le point de gagner. (We were about to win.)
Crucial Warning: Never say Je suis à propos de partir or Je suis environ partir. These are incorrect. Sur le point de is the only standard structure for this meaning The details matter here..
Movement and Location: Par là, Par ici, Dans le coin
In English, we say "He is about the house" or "Walking about the town" to indicate general presence or movement without a specific destination. French uses adverbs of place or the preposition par (via/around).
- Il est par là. (He is about / around here.)
- Elle se promène par ici. (She is walking about / around here.)
- Il y a des gens un peu partout / dans le coin. (There are people about / around the neighborhood.)
For "running about" or "rushing about" implying disorganized movement, French often uses the verb courir or aller combined with partout (everywhere) or dans tous les sens (in all directions). In real terms, )
- **Il court dans tous les sens. That said, * Les enfants courent partout. ** (The children are running about. (He is running about frantically.
Describing Characteristics: The Preposition De
When about links an adjective describing a personality trait or a physical sensation to a person, French typically uses de. This appears in constructions like nice of you, smart of him, or stupid about that (though English often switches to of here too) But it adds up..
- C’est gentil de ta part. (That is nice of/about you.)
- C’est bête de l’avoir fait. (That was stupid of/about doing it.)
- Il est fort en maths. (He is good at/about math — Note: 'fort en' is the fixed phrase for skills.)
Still, if about introduces the object of a feeling (e.Also, g. , "worried about, happy about, angry about"), the preposition is dictated by the specific adjective, not a universal rule for about.
- Inquiet pour / au sujet de... (Worried about...)
- Content de... (Happy about...)
- Fâché contre / après... (Angry about/with...)
- Fier de... (Proud of/about...)
Always learn the adjective + preposition combination as a single vocabulary unit.
The "What is it about?" Question: De quoi... ?
Asking
La question « De quoi… ? »
Lorsque vous devez demander « De quoi s’agit-il ? » ou « De quoi parle-t-on ? », la façon la plus naturelle de le formuler en français est :
- De quoi s’agit-il ? – « What is it about? » / « What’s this about? »
- De quoi parle-t-on ? – « What are we talking about? »
- De quoi est-ce que tu parles ? – « What are you talking about? »
Ces expressions couvrent la plupart des situations où vous devez identifier le sujet ou le thème d’une conversation, d’un document ou d’un problème That's the whole idea..
Exemples
- De quoi s’agit le paragraphe ? – « What is the paragraph about? »
- De quoi parle-t-on en réunion ? – « What are we talking about in the meeting? »
- De quoi est-ce que tu as entendu ? – « What did you hear about? »
Si vous souhaitez demander l’avis de quelqu’un sur un sujet, utilisez :
- Qu’en penses-tu ? – « What do you think about it? »
- Qu’en pensez-vous ? (formel) – « What do you think about it? (formal) »
Exemple
- Qu’en penses-tu de la nouvelle politique ? – « What do you think about the new policy? »
Autres prépositions françaises courantes pour « about »
Bien que à propos de et au sujet de soient les équivalents les plus courants de « about », le français propose plusieurs alternatives,
