Yes, many languages contract words. In Spanish, Vengo del mercado fuses de + el into del. French does the same, obligatorily: de + le becomes du in la porte du bureau, and à le is always au.
Everyday sentences with contracted forms
On se retrouve au café après le travail. French à + le contracts to au, so this is how people arrange a meeting after work.
Le livre du professeur est sur la table. Here de + le becomes du; a French speaker would never say de le professeur.
Nous allons aux cours du soir deux fois par semaine. With plural nouns, à + les and de + les contract to aux and des, and both forms are required.
El gimnasio está al lado del banco. Spanish packs two contractions into one sentence: a + el becomes al and de + el becomes del.
Vamos al parque con los niños. A natural weekend plan in Spanish, where al is the only possible form after ir.
C'est le sac au fond du placard. Both French contractions in one everyday line: au from à + le and du from de + le.
When the contraction does not happen
In French the contraction does not happen before feminine la: you say à la gare and de la plage, and the words never squeeze into one form.
The same applies before l', as in l'amie and l'hôtel, so à l'hôtel and de l'école stay as two words each. The elided l' is already complete, so nothing fuses further.