Personal pronouns in French

We use personal pronouns to replace nouns in a sentence, especially to avoid repetition.

Like most nouns in French, the form of a personal pronoun changes depending on the genderand number. They also change form depending on the person and case (that is, whether the pronoun is a subject or object in the sentence).

Before we take a look at different personal pronouns in French, it’s worth noting a few key differences between personal pronouns in French and English.

Tu/Vous

The French word for ‘you’ has both a singular (tu) and plural (vous) form. However, we also use ‘vous’ when we want to be polite or formal, even when referring to an individual. ‘Tu’, on the other hand, never refers to more than one person, and is always informal, meaning it’s best reserved for friends, family members or close acquaintances.

On

The closest equivalent we have to ‘on’ in English is the (rarely used) personal pronoun ‘one’, although it's far more common in French. The phrase 'On ne mange pas de poisson' for instance, might be translated ‘One does not eat fish’. But it can also be translated a few other ways, such as 'We don't eat fish', or 'Fish isn't eaten'.

The different meanings of 'on' are:

‘One/people in general’.

On n'utilise pas le pronom personnel « tu » avec les inconnus. - One doesn't use the personal pronoun 'tu' with strangers/The personal pronoun 'tu' is not used with strangers.

‘We’

On n'a jamais appris à jouer du piano. - We never learned to play piano.

‘Someone/some unknown person’

On a volé mon vélo. - Someone stole my bike.

‘On’ is often used in the passive voice in French. More on that in Lesson 38 of The Complete French Course.

Ils/Elles

In English, we don’t distinguish between masculine and feminine for the third personal pronoun in the plural form. This is different in French. ‘Ils’ refers to multiple men, boys, or objects that are masculine, while ‘Elles’ refers to multiple women, girls or objects that are feminine. If there is a mix of masculine and feminine, always use ‘Ils’.

Subject pronouns designate the subject, or main actor, of a sentence.

Examples:

J'aime cuisiner. - I love to cook.

Elle parle cinq langues. - She can speak five languages.

Note that 'je' is contracted, as in the example above, when followed by a word that begins with a vowel or an 'h' muet (mute h).

For more on subject pronouns, check out Lesson 06 of The Complete French Course.

Direct object pronouns

Direct object pronouns receive the action directly, as in the following examples:

Nous regardons les films. (We watch the films.) - Nous les regardons.

Je vois Béatrice. (I see Béatrice) - Je la vois.

Il mange le gâteau. (He eats the cake) - Il le mange.

Note that the 'me', 'te', 'le' and 'la' all contract when followed by a word that begins with a vowel or an 'h' muet (mute h).

Indirect object pronouns

Indirect object pronouns receive the action indirectly. In other words, the action is done to or for someone, as in the following examples:

Je parle à Paul. (I speak to Paul.) - Je lui parle.

Nous écrivons à nos amis. (We write to our friends.) - Nous leur écrivons.

Note that the 'me' and 'te' contract when followed by a word that begins with a vowel or an 'h' muet (mute h).

For more on object pronouns, check out Lesson 26 of The Complete French Course.