French grammar by topic › French pronouns, from je to lequel

French pronouns, from je to lequel

Pronouns are short words that replace nouns, and they're what makes French sound natural. They also go in a different place than in English: before the verb.

Learn them in order: subject pronouns, then direct and indirect objects, then y and en, then relatives like qui, que and dont.

The essentials

Object pronouns go before the verb: je le vois, je lui parle.
Y replaces à + place or thing (j'y vais); en replaces de + noun or a quantity (j'en veux deux).
Tu is informal and singular; vous is formal or plural.
Relative pronouns link clauses: qui (subject), que (object), où (place or time), dont (with de).

Every lesson on this topic

Each lesson has a full explanation, examples you can listen to, and exercises with answers.

A0 (the A0 course)

Subject pronouns: Who is doing the action
Tu vs vous: Choosing the right 'you'

A1 (the A1 course)

Stress pronouns: Moi, je…; avec toi
Subject pronoun: On = we, people, one
C'est vs il est / elle est: Choosing between them

A2 (the A2 course)

Direct object pronouns: Je le vois, je la connais
Indirect object pronouns: Je lui parle, je leur téléphone
Adverbial pronoun y: J'y vais
Adverbial pronoun en: J'en ai deux
Quelqu'un, quelque chose, personne, rien: Somebody, something, nobody, nothing

B1 (the B1 course)

Relative pronouns: L'homme qui parle, le livre que je lis
Relative pronoun: La ville où j'habite, le jour où…
Relative pronoun: Le livre dont je parle
Ce qui, ce que: Ce que je veux, ce qui est important
Demonstrative pronouns: The one, the ones
Possessive pronouns: Mine, yours, his…
Adverbial pronoun y: J'y pense
Adverbial pronoun en: J'en ai besoin, j'en parle

B2 (the B2 course)

Double object pronouns: Je te le donne, je le lui donne
Relative pronouns: La raison pour laquelle…
Indefinite pronouns: Each one, a few, several

C1 (the C1 course)

Demonstrative pronouns: Ceci vs cela

In the app, these lessons are taught one idea at a time with audio, practised until you get them right on three separate days, and brought back when your own French shows a mistake on them.

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