Subject Pronouns
Let's start at the beginning with one of the easiest parts of French grammar. As you'll soon see, there's nothing too complicated about subject pronouns in French.
Let's start at the beginning with one of the easiest parts of French grammar. As you'll soon see, there's nothing too complicated about subject pronouns in French.
But wait! What are subject pronouns anyway?
Subject pronouns are those little words which we use (instead of nouns or names) to identify who or what is doing an action:
I, You, He, She, It ((image))
- I am drunk.
- We don't want to study.
- He is Scottish, be careful!
- You are stupid.
- They live in Toulouse.
| Subject Pronouns | |
|---|---|
| French | English |
| je | I |
| tu | you |
| il / elle / on | he / she / it |
| nous | we |
| vous | you |
| ils / elles | they |
There are two important differences between French subject pronouns and English ones:
Polite vous and informal tu
French has two different words for 'you', depending on whether we are speaking formally or informally.
vous
Vous is the polite form. The tendency is almost always to prefer vous is any situation which involves people who we do not know well.
- Where do you live? (vous)
- What do you study? (vous)
- Who do you live with? (vous)
- Are you married? (vous)
tu
Tu is only used amongst close friends and family, or amongst young people.
- Where do you live? (tu)
- What do you study? (tu)
- Who do you live with? (tu)
- Are you married? (tu)
Plural forms
While vous is used for both singular (one person) and plural (2+ people) forms, poor old tu is only used in singular. So if you are with a group of buddies, you'll address them collectively with vous not tu:
- How are you? (sing vous)
- How are you? (sing tu)
- How are you? (plur vous)
Let's see some more examples?
If you are looking for more verbs, visit our ......
- We haven't invited you to our party.
Let's look at that last phrase again
- We haven't invited you to our party ((IMG))
This phrase introduces us to two other types of pronouns
We cover object pronouns here (These are a bit more complicated that English, sorry)
We cover possessive pronouns here (These are dead simple)
A few more points about French subject pronouns:
Verbs match the pronoun
French verbs have different endings according to the person being used. So French pronouns will always need to go with the correct form of the verb.
- I live in Paris
- We live in the United Kingdom
- They live in the United States
- We want ketchup on our chips!
- I want ketchup on my croissant!*
*This is just an example. Don't say this. ever.
Where to now?
If you want more grammar, then check out the other lessons in this unit:
For more practical language examples, have a look at our sections on French phrases.
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This Course
Basic French
Just getting started? Here are all the basics, from introducing yourself, to numbers, the alphabet and loads more crazy Gallic stuff.
Other sections in this course
Real French I
Forget the textbooks. Here's the sort of informal French you'll hear amongst friends.
It's the type of really practical language that you'll use all the time in casual conversations, but nobody's actually ever bothered to teach you. Until now.
1.2: Show me more!
You've learnt the basics (Tell me you've learnt the basics!) and want to move on? Let's look at likes and loves and a whole load of other stuff.
Basic French Grammar
Your starter's guide to French grammar rules.
1.1 Know nothing? Start here!
Bienvenue to our series of classes for anyone starting to learn French, or those of you who were smoking behind the bike sheds when they should have been in French class.
Our focus in these classes is on real, practical examples which you can start to use straight away. We'll keep grammar to a minimum, promise!
Basic French Grammar
Other classes in this section:
Subject Pronouns
Let's start at the beginning with one of the easiest parts of French grammar. As you'll soon see, there's nothing too complicated about subject pronouns in French.
Object pronouns
What are object pronouns, and how do we use them in French?
An introduction to French Verbs
In this basic grammar class we're going to take a look at the main types of French verbs.
Irregular French verbs
How do we conjugate irregular French verbs? As we'll see, some of the most common - and most useful - French verbs are irregular. In this class we'll look at some really essential irregular verbs and show you how to conjugate them in the present tense.
Subject and Object Pronouns in French
An introduction to subject pronouns and object pronouns.