The choice between aller and venir depends on the point of reference. When a movement is viewed from the place where the speaker is, a different verb is used than when that movement is viewed from the destination. aller presents a movement away from the point of reference. venir presents a movement approaching that point. In Je vais au marché, the market is not the speaker’s point of departure. In Tu viens au marché ?, the market is the place that is approached from the chosen point of view.

Movement toward another place

Usage	Explanation
Distant destination	We use aller when the movement is toward a place that is not the point of reference.
Plan or intention	We also use aller to talk about a planned action or an intention to travel.
Movement toward a known place	With a place that has already been identified, aller simply indicates the intended destination.

aller is used to show that a person is heading toward a place. The place may be a city, a house, a store, a school, or a country. We say je vais au travail, elle va à Paris, nous allons chez le médecin. The verb indicates only the general direction toward that place, without the idea of approaching the person who is speaking. With a specific activity or destination, aller is often constructed with à, au, aux, or chez, depending on the noun that follows.

Movement toward the present place

Usage	Explanation
Arrival toward the speaker	We use venir when the person is approaching the place where the speaker is located.
Movement toward the shared place	We use venir when the movement is toward a place shared by the interlocutor and the speaker.
Invitation to join	We use venir to invite someone to join us in the place where we are.

venir is used when the movement is toward the place where the speaker or listener is. The point of reference may be ici, the house, the office, or the room where people are speaking. We say viens ici, je viens chez toi, elles viennent au bureau. The verb emphasizes the approach. In Viens près de moi, the person moves toward the speaker’s position. In Nous venons à la maison, the house is the destination viewed as a shared place.

Point of view in the narrative

Usage	Explanation
Character's point of view	In a narrative, the point of reference follows the character who is speaking or thinking.
Change of scene	When the scene changes, the choice between aller and venir changes with the new point of view.
Reported speech	In reported speech, the chosen verb depends on the person whose point of view is adopted.

In a narrative, the point of reference changes with the scene and with the character who is speaking. If a character is in Lyon and says je vais à Marseille, they place themselves in Lyon. If they are already in Marseille and say je viens à Marseille, they are speaking from another place and announcing their arrival. The same movement can therefore be described with a different verb depending on the perspective chosen. In a dialogue, each line keeps its own center of reference, and it is this center that determines the choice between aller and venir.

aller àaller là basvenir icivenir de là basaller chezvenir de

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Cette expression indique la destination chez une personne ou dans son domicileCette expression indique l origine d un déplacement ou une action qui se termine juste maintenantCette expression indique une origine lointaine dans le récit ou la conversationCette expression indique la destination principale avec un lieu précisCette expression indique un mouvement vers l endroit où l on est ou vers un lieu partagéCette expression indique un déplacement vers un lieu éloigné du locuteur

Origin and destination in French

Word	Definition
venir de	This expression indicates the origin of a movement or an action that is ending right now.
aller à	This expression indicates the main destination with a specific place.
aller chez	This expression indicates the destination at a person’s place or in their home.
venir ici	This expression indicates a movement toward where one is or toward a shared place.
aller là bas	This expression indicates movement toward a place far away from the speaker.
venir de là bas	This expression indicates a distant origin in the story or conversation.

Scramble

To indicate the origin, venir de + place is used. Je viens de la gare shows the point of departure. Il vient de Nice indicates the city he is arriving from. For the destination, aller à + place or aller chez + person is used. We say aller à l’école, aller au cinéma, aller chez Marie. With a person, chez marks the place associated with that person. Je vais chez le dentiste refers to the dentist’s office, whereas je vais à l’hôpital designates the place itself.

Choice in the imperative according to direction

Usage	Explanation
Command toward the speaker	We use viens when asking someone to approach the place where we are.
Command toward another place	We use va when asking someone to go toward a place different from where we are speaking.
Gentler invitation	We can choose viens for a friendly invitation that proposes joining the group.

In the imperative, va is used to send someone to another place, and viens is used to call them toward oneself or toward the place where one is. Va au magasin asks someone to move away from the point of speech to reach the store. Viens au salon asks someone to move closer to the place where people are speaking. With a specific person, va chez Paul directs someone toward Paul’s house, whereas viens chez Paul implies asking someone to join Paul with the speaker, or to go to the same place from the point of view of the conversation.

aller avecvenir ensemblealler ensemblevenir avec

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Cette expression signifie se déplacer en compagnie de quelqu unCette expression signifie accompagner quelqu un ou partir avec cette personne vers un lieuCette expression signifie arriver ou rejoindre ensemble un lieu ou un groupeCette expression signifie se joindre au déplacement ou accompagner le groupe vers le lieu où il va

Accompanying or joining someone

Word	Definition
aller avec	This expression means accompanying someone or leaving with that person toward a place.
venir avec	This expression means joining the movement or accompanying the group toward the place where it is going.
aller ensemble	This expression means traveling in the company of someone.
venir ensemble	This expression means arriving or joining together at a place or with a group.

Scramble

aller avec expresses the idea of accompanying someone toward a place or moving as part of the same group. Je vais avec mes amis means that I am leaving in their company. venir avec can also express company, but it often emphasizes joining a movement. Viens avec nous invites someone to join the group. Il vient avec sa sœur indicates that he is traveling with her, from the speaker’s point of view. In these expressions, the presence of avec shows the relationship between the people during the movement.

venir par icivenir jusque làvenir ici

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Cette tournure est courante à l oral pour inviter quelqu un à se rapprocherCette tournure peut servir à exprimer un déplacement jusqu à un point précis dans un registre familierCette tournure met l accent sur la direction vers la zone du locuteur dans un usage naturel à l oral

Spoken variants according to context

Region	Variant	Definition	Example
France	venir ici	This phrasing is common in speech for inviting someone to come closer.	Viens ici, je veux te montrer quelque chose.Viens ici, I want to show you something.
Belgium	venir jusque là	This phrasing can be used to express movement as far as a precise point in a familiar register.	Tu viens jusque là après le dîner ?Are you viens jusque là after dinner ?
Canada	venir par ici	This phrasing emphasizes the direction toward the speaker's area in natural spoken usage.	Passe donc venir par ici quand tu as fini.Come by and venir par ici when you are finished.

Scramble

In speech, some regions use venir ici where others tend to say venir là or venir par ici. The meaning remains that of a movement toward a place shared with the speaker. One also hears very common phrases such as viens ici to ask someone to come closer, or on vient chez toi to announce a visit. In spontaneous speech, the context is often enough to show whether the movement is toward the speaker’s place, toward the listener, or toward a place shared by both.