📅⏪

How to Say ‘It's last year’ in French

C'est l'année dernière

s eh l' ah-nay dair-nee-yehr

[s eh l' ah-nay dair-nee-yehr]

💬 Usage Tip: l'année is la année with the a dropped before the vowel, so l' can't stand alone. Note that dernière comes after the noun, unlike "last" in English.

Phrase Breakdown

[s]

it / this

"C'" stands for "ce" and means "it" or "this" in expressions like "c'est."

Example

C'est agréable de parler avec une équipe accueillante.

It's pleasant to speak with a welcoming team.

est

[eh]

Third person singular present of be.

Example

C'est important.

It is important.

[l']

the

Used before singular when the item is known.

Example

L'homme est là.

The man is there.

année

[ah-nay]

year

A period of twelve months.

Example

L'année commence en janvier.

The year begins in January.

dernière

[dair-nee-yehr]

last

The final part or time.

Example

C'est la dernière chance.

It's the last chance.

Guides for French learners

The Most Common French Verbs: the 20 You'll Actually UseThe 20 most common French verbs, with the present-tense forms you need, real example sentences with native audio, and two shortcuts for past and future.Ordering in French: Cafés, Bakeries and Restaurants (with Menu Vocabulary)How to order in French at a café, a bakery and a restaurant: the phrases, the questions staff ask, and the menu and food vocabulary to understand the answers.

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