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Object pronouns · me · le · lui · leur

me/te/nous/vous for me, you, us. Direct: le/la/les. Indirect (à + person): lui/leur. They all go BEFORE the verb.

Examples

  • Je la vois.I see her.
  • Il leur parle.He talks to them.

How it works

Object pronouns save you from repeating a noun. The big rule: in French they go BEFORE the verb, the opposite of English.

DIRECT OBJECT (the thing or person that follows the verb with no preposition) — le, la, les:

lehim / it (m)
laher / it (f)
lesthem (m or f)
Je vois Marie.I see Marie.
Je la vois.I see her.
(not "Je vois la")
Tu connais ce livre.You know that book.
Tu le connais.You know it.

Indirect object

replaces "à + person":

luito him / to her
leurto them
Je parle à Marie.I'm talking to Marie.
Je lui parle.I'm talking to her.
(not "Je parle lui")
Il téléphone à ses amis.

He phones his friends.

Il leur téléphone.He phones them.

ME / TE / NOUS / VOUS — "me, you, us, you" These four serve as both direct and indirect objects, so there is nothing to choose. They go BEFORE the verb too:

Il me parle.He talks to me.
Je t'aime.I love you.
(me / te → m' / t' before a vowel)
Elle nous regarde.She's looking at us.
Je vous remercie.Thank you. (I thank you.)

How to tell le/la/les from lui/leur: does the verb take à?

voir quelqu'un→ direct(le, la, les)
parler à quelqu'un→ indirect (lui, leur)

Elision

le and la become l' before a vowel; lui and leur never elide.

Je l'aime.I love him. / I love her.
(context tells you which)

In the passé composé the pronoun goes before the AUXILIARY (the helper verb avoir or être):

Je l'ai vu.I saw him.
Je l'ai vue.I saw her. (the -e is practised in Accord du participe)
Il leur a parlé.He spoke to them.

In the negative, ne…pas wraps pronoun + verb together:

Je ne le vois pas.I don't see him.
Je ne lui parle pas.I don't talk to her.

In an affirmative command the pronoun moves AFTER, with a hyphen, and me/te become moi/toi:

Regarde-le !Look at him!
Donne-MOI le livre ! Give me the book!

What you'll practise

  1. 1. Direct object · le / la / les

    Replace the direct object (a thing or person not introduced by à). le=him/it(m), la=her/it(f), les=them.

    • Je la vois.I see her.
    • Nous les regardons.We watch them.

  2. 2. Indirect object · lui / leur

    Replace 'à + person'. lui = to him/her (sing.), leur = to them.

    • Je lui parle.I talk to him/her.
    • Il leur téléphone.He calls them.

  3. 3. l' before vowel

    le and la elide to l' before a vowel or mute h.

    • Il l'aime.He likes it / her / him.

  4. 4. me / te / nous / vous

    me (me), te (you), nous (us), vous (you, formal or plural): one form, with or without à after the verb, placed before the verb. m' / t' before a vowel.

    • Il me parle.He talks to me.
    • Je t'aime.I love you.

Practise it until it sticks

Short drills built on these 4 skills, with instant feedback on every answer. Free to start.

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