Pronouns Flashcards
pronoun
• a pronoun is a word that stands in for a noun, often to avoid the need to repeat the same noun over and over
• like nouns, pronouns can refer to people, things, concepts, and places
• most sentences contain at least one noun or pronoun
• some example of pronouns are mine, yours, me, you, him, her and many others
un pronom
subject pronoun
• type of personal pronoun that indicate who or what is performing the action of a verb
• serve as the subject of a verb
• may be singular or plural, masculine or feminine to agree with the noun (subject) they replace
ex. i’m ready
ex. we need to leave
un pronom sujet
ex. je suis prêt
ex. nous devons partir
i (subject pronoun)
je
you (subject pronoun)
tu
he, it (subject pronoun)
il
she, it (subject pronoun)
elle
one, we, they (subject pronoun)
on
we (subject pronoun)
nous
you formal, you all (subject pronoun)
vous
they (a group with men and women or all men or referring to masculine noun) (subject pronoun)
ils
they (a group of all women or referring to feminine noun) (subject pronoun)
elles
reflexive pronouns
• reiterate the subject, indicate the subject of the verb is performing an action on itself
• it directly precedes the verb
• required with pronominal verbs
• only used with pronominal verbs
• must agree with the subject
• may be direct or indirect objects
ex. i get (myself) up at 8am
ex. we know each other
pronoms réfléchis
ex. je me lève à 8h
ex. nous nous connaissons
me, myself (reflexive pronoun)
me (m’, moi)
you, yourself (reflexive pronoun)
te (t’, toi)
him(self), her(self), it(self) (reflexive pronoun)
se (s’)
us, ourselves (reflexive pronoun)
nous
you, yourself, yourselves (reflexive pronoun)
vous
them, themselves (reflexive pronoun)
se (s’)
direct object
• a noun, that someone or something acts upon
• the direct object directly follows the verb
• always used with transitive verbs
• never preceded by prepositions
• cannot be removed without altering the meaning of the sentence
• become the subject when sentence is turned around into the passive voice
• can always be found by asking “whom?” or “what?”
ex. i want the painting
ex. she knows john
ex. he’s reading a novel
un objet direct
ex. je veux la peinture
ex. elle connaît john
ex. il lit un roman
direct object pronoun
• used in order to avoid repeating nouns in a series of sentences or when answering questions
• generally precede the verb
ex. she sees marc. she’s known marc for 2 years - she sees marc. she’s known him for 2 years
ex. i know him
ex. we’re drinking it
ex. do you love me?
ex. they see you
pronom objet direct
ex. elle voit marc. elle connaît marc depuis 2 ans - elle voit marc. elle le connaît depuis 2 ans
ex. je le connais
ex. nous la buvons
ex. tu m’aimes ?
ex. elles vous voient
me (direct object pronoun)
me (m’, moi)
you (direct object pronoun)
te (t’, toi)
him, it (direct object pronoun)
le (l’)
her, it (direct object pronoun)
la (l’)
us (direct object pronoun)
nous
you (direct object pronoun)
vous
them (direct object pronoun)
les
indirect object
• a person that someone or something does something to indirectly
• it follows a verb + preposition
• connected to the verb with a preposition
• cannot be removed without altering the meaning of a sentence
• can be found by asking “to whom?” or “for whom?”
ex. he’s giving his friend flowers
ex. i’m buying it for my children
compléments d’objet indirect
ex. il donne des fleurs à son amie
ex. je l’achète pour mes enfants
indirect object pronoun
• used in order to avoid repeating nouns in a series of sentences or when answering questions
• generally precedes the verb
ex. i’m reading to my kids. i read to my kids every evening
ex. i’m reading to my kids. i read to them every evening
pronom objet indirect
ex. je lis à mes enfants. je lis à mes enfants chaque soir
ex. je lis à mes enfants. je leur lis chaque soir
me (indirect object pronoun)
me (m’, moi)
you (indirect object pronoun)
te (t’, toi)
him, her (indirect object pronoun)
• there’s no distinction between “to him” and “to her”
lui
us (indirect object pronoun)
nous
you formal, you all (indirect object pronoun)
vous
them (indirect object pronoun)
leur
stressed pronouns
• used for emphasis
• may be used with or in place of a subject or object
• must agree with the subject or object in number and gender
• can only refer to people
ex. it doesn’t work for me
ex. he did it himself
ex. ça ne marche pas pour moi
ex. il l’a fait lui-même
me (stressed pronoun)
moi
you (stressed pronoun)
toi
him (stressed pronoun)
lui
her (stressed pronoun)
elle
oneself (stressed pronoun)
soi
us (stressed pronoun)
nous
you formal, you all (stressed pronoun)
vous
themselves
ex. my children prepared the meal themselves
eux-mêmes
ex. mes enfants ont préparé le repas eux-mêmes
