par contre

Meaning

Contrasts two facts, in everyday language.

Position and punctuation

at the start of the sentence · a comma after

Example

Le matériel est fourni ; par contre, il faut apporter son ordinateur.

Equipment is provided; on the other hand, you have to bring your own laptop.

In the DELF

the B2 oral presentation

The trap

Perfectly correct in speech, long frowned upon in writing. In a DELF paper, prefer en revanche: the examiner reads a controlled register, and the meaning does not change.