Answers
Dec 01, 2010 - 08:34 AM
Technically speaking you could get away with using 'des' for the tickets which would be "let's buy some tickets." Although it's not explicitly noted in the text, they would only buy 2 or 3 tickets (not sure if just the girls are going, or if Oliver is also going) les is used in this case.
I did find this information also which may help as a bit of a review.
- Le is used to refer to something precise, definite (like something you could point at): Le restaurant de l'hôtel The restaurant of the hotel
- Le is also used to speak about something in general: Le lait est bon Milk is good BUT
- Du on the contrary is used to refer to an imprecise quantity of something (part of a whole): Je veux du lait I want milk (not all the milk in general, nor a precise milk, but rather "some" milk, an imprecise quantity)
The same applies to: - La (feminine of Le), it's used for precise, definite things: La porte de l'hôtel The door of the hotel
- La is used to speak in general: L'eau est bonne Water is good, (L' here is a contracted La) BUT
- De la refers to an imprecise quantity: Je veux de l'eau I want water (meaning some water, part of a whole)
And same thing in the pural: - Les for precise things: Les portes de l'hôtel The doors of the hotel
- Les for things in general: Les oranges sont bonnes Oranges are good
- Des for an imprecise quantity: Je veux des oranges I want oranges
Maybe some confusion comes from the fact that Du is the contraction of De + Le, and Des is the contraction of De + Les, (in the feminine there's no contraction: De la). By the way it's a good example of a contraction that is not informal at all, here you HAVE to make it otherwise it's wrong!!!
So to sum up (it's more complex than that, so you should know it's not an absolute), but to make it easier at first:
Le The(masculine)
La The(feminine)
Les The(plural)
Du Some(masculine)
De la Some(feminine)
Des Some(plural)
Please let us know if there is anything you don't understand and best of luck with French.
I did find this information also which may help as a bit of a review.
- Le is used to refer to something precise, definite (like something you could point at): Le restaurant de l'hôtel The restaurant of the hotel
- Le is also used to speak about something in general: Le lait est bon Milk is good BUT
- Du on the contrary is used to refer to an imprecise quantity of something (part of a whole): Je veux du lait I want milk (not all the milk in general, nor a precise milk, but rather "some" milk, an imprecise quantity)
The same applies to: - La (feminine of Le), it's used for precise, definite things: La porte de l'hôtel The door of the hotel
- La is used to speak in general: L'eau est bonne Water is good, (L' here is a contracted La) BUT
- De la refers to an imprecise quantity: Je veux de l'eau I want water (meaning some water, part of a whole)
And same thing in the pural: - Les for precise things: Les portes de l'hôtel The doors of the hotel
- Les for things in general: Les oranges sont bonnes Oranges are good
- Des for an imprecise quantity: Je veux des oranges I want oranges
Maybe some confusion comes from the fact that Du is the contraction of De + Le, and Des is the contraction of De + Les, (in the feminine there's no contraction: De la). By the way it's a good example of a contraction that is not informal at all, here you HAVE to make it otherwise it's wrong!!!
So to sum up (it's more complex than that, so you should know it's not an absolute), but to make it easier at first:
Le The(masculine)
La The(feminine)
Les The(plural)
Du Some(masculine)
De la Some(feminine)
Des Some(plural)
Please let us know if there is anything you don't understand and best of luck with French.