Why is it that when you say "Je joue au hockey" you can't use le hockey?
It is because "Ã le" is contracted to "au".
For example,
Je vais à l'école, mais je vais au lit.
thanks
à + le = au
à + les = aux
de + le = du
de + les = des
Sra (aka Mme)
When you say "Je joue au hockey" in French, you use the preposition "au" before the word "hockey." The reason you can't use the definite article "le" in this case is because the verb "jouer" requires the preposition "à" to be used when talking about playing a sport or a musical instrument.
In French, when you talk about playing a sport or a musical instrument, you always use the preposition "à" (which contracts to "au" before masculine nouns) and not the definite article "le/la" (which corresponds to "the" in English). This is a specific grammar rule in French for expressing the concept of playing.
For example:
- Je joue au hockey (I play hockey)
- Je joue au piano (I play the piano)
On the other hand, if you want to mention a specific game or a specific musical instrument, then you would use the definite article "le/la."
For example:
- Je joue le match de hockey ce soir. (I'm playing the hockey game tonight)
- Je joue du piano de Chopin. (I'm playing Chopin's piano)
So, in summary, when you say "Je joue au hockey," you can't use "le hockey" because the verb "jouer" is followed by the preposition "à" to express playing a sport or an instrument, and not the definite article "le."