Bill (imparfait|corrigezmoi)

[balmy ermine]

Please be patient

Our volunteers look into many questions every day; sometimes it takes them a little while to answer.

Pro tip: you can rename the thread title with `.tr <thread name>`

Make it descriptive, including relevant context, but also to the point. This way you improve your chances of getting a more relevant and specific answer.

[formal snow]

I can’t think of examples other than time of day

Je mange en novembre, au bureau, en paix, en 2025…. nothing that uses LA/LE (without the À)

[magic sapphire]

Days of the week

Also just use le

You can't call them objects, they just have a Ø preposition

[lean loom]

It's more because of the fact that matin and soir describe the day and evening as a moment, a whole unit, instead of a duration

English doesn't make this distinction. So, the word 'morning' can either describe a moment of time or a duration.
'I go for a walk every morning'
Here, 'morning' is a moment of time because I can count it (every morning, last morning, tomorrow morning).
'I go for a walk in the morning'
Here, 'morning' is a period of time in which something happens. I can't count it like: 'I like 'I go for a walk in every morning' for example.

French does make this distinction:
« Je me promène tous les matins »
« Je me promène dans la matinée »

[magic sapphire]

what are you yapping?

you didn't use le matin in your examples

dans la matinée is more like sometime in the morning

and french makes a distinction with tous les matins just like english says every morning instead of just in the morning

[nova steppe]

it also works with seasons

For "hiver/été/automne", both « en » & « le/l' » work

For "printemps", it's either « le » or « au »

[formal snow]

Merci pour les exemples!

But, with the silly question I had, how would I write that eldritch horror in French? "Il mange/dévore le matin" would look like he's just having breakfast.