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French Phrase

Ils sont pas au bureau aujourd'hui.

/il sɔ̃ pa o byʁo o.ʒuʁ.dɥi/
Meaning"They are not at the office today."
💡

Meaning

‘They are not at the office today.’ The sentence is colloquial French where the ‘ne’ of the negation is omitted, a common feature in everyday speech.

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When to use

Use this phrase when you want to tell a colleague or friend that a group of people (usually coworkers) are absent from the office for the day. It’s perfect for informal conversations, quick messages, or spoken updates.

✦Grammar Breakdown

Ilsnesontpasaubureauaujourd'hui

1

Subject Pronoun

‘Ils’ is the third‑person plural masculine subject pronoun meaning ‘they’.

2

Verb ‘être’

‘sont’ is the present‑tense form of ‘être’ for ‘ils/elles’, meaning ‘are’.

3

Negation (ne…pas)

Standard French negates a verb with ‘ne’ before and ‘pas’ after the verb; in spoken French the ‘ne’ is often dropped.

4

Preposition ‘au’

‘au’ = à + le, used before masculine singular nouns like ‘bureau’ (office).

5

Adverb ‘aujourd’hui’

Means ‘today’; it is placed at the end of the clause in most sentences.

🗨In Conversation

A

Ils sont pas au bureau aujourd'hui ?

Aren’t they at the office today?

Non, ils travaillent depuis chez eux.

No, they’re working from home.

B

✕Common Mistakes

  • Ils sont pas au bureau aujourd'hui.

    In formal French you must keep the ‘ne’ before the verb; omitting it is only acceptable in informal speech.

  • Ils sont pas à le bureau aujourd'hui.

    Do not use ‘à le bureau’; it contracts to ‘au bureau’. Forgetting the contraction sounds ungrammatical.

↔Alternatives

  • Ils ne sont pas au bureau aujourd'hui.

    They are not at the office today.

  • Ils ne sont pas au travail aujourd'hui.

    They are not at work today.

  • Ils ne sont pas présents aujourd'hui.

    They are not present today.

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Cultural Tip

In everyday spoken French, especially among younger speakers, the ‘ne’ in a negative construction is frequently dropped, leaving just ‘pas’. This is perfectly natural in conversation but should be kept in formal writing or when you want to sound more polished. Also, ‘aujourd’hui’ can be pronounced quickly as /o.ʒuʁ.dɥi/ with the final ‘i’ almost disappearing in rapid speech.