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Learn to Speak French Online:
French Grammar Guidebook

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Adverbs
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You have already seen how il y a can mean "there is," "there are":
 

Il y a un restaurant là-bas.
There's a restaurant over there.
Il y a trois cafés dans ce quartier.
There are three cafés in this neighborhood. 
Y a-t-il un restaurant ici?
Is there a restaurant here?

Followed by an expression of time, il y a means "ago."
 

J'ai dîné dans un restaurant il y a deux jours.
I had dinner in a restaurant two days ago.
Nous l'avons envoyé il y a trois mois.
We sent it three months ago.

Il y a can also begin a sentence:
 

Il y a une heure le téléphone a sonné.
An hour ago the telephone rang.

Notice that when il y a is used to mean "ago" it generally requires the Passé Composé.



Examples of Il y a (Ago)

  • Oui, j'y ai déjeuné une fois, il y a deux ans. C'est un restaurant formidable mais tellement cher.
  • J'ai passé mon bac il y a trois ans.