French Phrase
Tu peux prendre les billets au distributeur.
Meaning
This sentence tells someone that they are allowed to collect or obtain the tickets from the ticket‑machine. It is a practical instruction often heard in stations, cinemas or event venues.
When to use
Use it when guiding a friend, a tourist, or a colleague to a self‑service kiosk where tickets are sold or printed. It works in both informal (tu) and semi‑formal contexts such as a receptionist speaking to a guest.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Tupeuxprendrelesbilletsaudistributeur
Peux (pouvoir)
‘Peux’ is the 2nd person singular present of the modal verb ‘pouvoir’, used to express ability or permission.
Infinitive after modal
When a modal verb like ‘pouvoir’ is used, it is followed by an infinitive verb (here ‘prendre’).
Article contraction ‘au’
‘au’ = à + le; it introduces a location or destination (the dispenser).
Distributeur (masc.)
‘Distributeur’ is a masculine noun meaning ‘dispenser’ or ‘ticket machine’; adjectives would agree in masculine singular.
🗨In Conversation
Où est-ce que je peux récupérer mes billets ?
Where can I get my tickets?
Tu peux prendre les billets au distributeur, juste à côté de l’entrée.
You can take the tickets at the dispenser, right next to the entrance.
✕Common Mistakes
Tu peux prendre les billets du distributeur.
‘du’ = de + le, which means ‘from the’; the correct preposition for location is ‘au’ (à + le).
Tu peux prends les billets au distributeur.
After ‘pouvoir’, the infinitive ‘prendre’ is required, not the conjugated form ‘prends’.
Tu peux prendre les billet au distributeur.
The noun ‘billet’ is plural here, so the article must be ‘les’.
↔Alternatives
Tu peux récupérer les billets au distributeur.
You can collect the tickets at the dispenser.
Il est possible de prendre les billets au distributeur.
It is possible to take the tickets at the dispenser.
Vous pouvez prendre les billets au distributeur.
You (formal/plural) can take the tickets at the dispenser.
Cultural Tip
In France, most train stations, metro stations and even some cinemas have automated ‘distributeurs’ that print tickets on the spot. The word ‘billet’ can refer to a train ticket, a cinema ticket, or a museum entry pass, so the context usually makes the meaning clear. When speaking to strangers, using the polite ‘vous’ form is preferred, but ‘tu’ is fine with friends or younger people.