de janvier à décembre
The phrase "January to December" is translated into French as de janvier à décembre.
This phrase is used to describe the full sequence of months in a calendar year, spanning from the first month to the last.
How does it change in a sentence?
To indicate a range from a starting point to an ending point, the phrase uses the prepositional structure de… à… Note that in French, the names of the months, janvier, février, mars, avril, mai, juin, juillet, août, septembre, octobre, novembre and décembre, are not capitalized unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence.
Did you know?
- The month décembre contains a linguistic hint of its original position in the ancient Roman calendar. Even though it is now the twelfth month, its name is rooted in 'decem', meaning 'ten', because it was once the tenth month.
- The name janvier comes from the Latin word 'ianuarius', which is derived from 'ianus', the Roman god of gates and beginnings. This name refers to the way the month acts as a gateway to a new year.
- The word août, representing August, is a linguistic oddity where the 'a' and 'u' are often pronounced as a single open vowel sound in many French dialects. This differs significantly from the way a learner might attempt to pronounce each letter separately.
Examples in context
- Mon anniversaire est en avril.My birthday is in April.
- Nous partons en vacances en août.We go on vacation in August.
- La rentrée scolaire est en septembre.The school year starts in September.
- Le calendrier va de janvier à décembre.The calendar goes from January to December.
- On compte les mois de janvier à décembre.We count the months from January to December.
Example conversation
Hugo and Emma are discussing the structure of a new planner.
- HugoEst-ce que l'agenda couvre l'année entière ?Does the planner cover the entire year?
- EmmaOui, il va de janvier à décembre.Yes, it goes from January to December.
- HugoC'est parfait pour mon organisation.That is perfect for my organization.
- EmmaJe suis contente que ça te plaise.I am glad you like it.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries de, décembre, janvier, à, CC BY-SA 4.0.
