Subject Pronouns Français 1

Subject Pronouns Subject pronouns are used when the pronoun is the subject of the sentence. You can remember subject pronouns easily by filling in the blank subject space for a simple sentence.   Example: ______ did the job. I, you, he, she, it, we, and they all fit into the blank and are, therefore, subject pronouns.

In French, just like in English, a sentence must have a subject and a verb. When studying French, you must understand subject pronouns before you can begin learning how to conjugate verbs, because the forms of verbs change for each subject pronoun.

1ST, 2ND, 3RD Person Singular Subject Pronouns 1ST, 2ND, 3RD Person Singular 1ST, 2ND, 3RD Person Plural Je  I Tu  you Il  He /it Elle  She /it On  one /we, they, the people, someone Nous  we Vous  you Ils  They Elles  They

French Subject Pronouns: je = I Je contracts to j' when followed by a vowel or mute h. Unlike I, in French je is only capitalized at the beginning of a sentence.

Examples Je suis américaine. J’habite Jackson. J’ai vingt-neuf ans. Elle est contente que je parle français. Tu as un stylo que je peux emprunter?

French Subject Pronouns: tu, vous = you French has two different words for you: tu and vous. Vous is the formal and plural you. It is used to show respect or maintain a certain distance or formality with someone. Use vous when speaking to one: person you don't know well, someone older, an authority figure, or anyone to whom you wish to show respect. Vous is also the plural you and must be used when talking to more than one person (y’all). Tu is the familiar you, which demonstrates a certain closeness and informality. Use tu when speaking to one: friend , peer, colleague, relative, child, or pet.

Examples Squirty, tu es adorable!

Exemples Mme Tucker, j’ai beaucoup de respect pour vous. Mes élèves, vous étudiez beaucoup!

French Subject Pronouns: il, elle = he, she, it Il can refer to a male, he, as well a masculine noun/object, it. Elle can refer to a female, she, or a feminine noun/object, it.

Examples Elle est belle, cette robe! Elle = it

Examples J’aime le stylo. Il est bleu.

French Subject Pronouns: on = one, we, you, they On is the indefinite pronoun and literally means one. It's often equivalent to the passive voice in English. In addition, on is an informal replacement for we, you, they, someone, or people in general.

Examples On va au cinéma. = We’re going to the movies. On dit que Beyoncé est gentille. They say Beyoncé is nice. On parle français. = French is spoken. On ne parle pas à la bibliothèque. = You don’t talk in the library.

French Subject Pronouns: nous = we The first person plural French subject pronoun nous is used exactly like we in English.

Examples Nous regardons la télé le dimanche soir. = We watch tv Sunday evening

French Subject Pronouns: ils, elles = they Ils is used for groups of men as well as mixed-gender groups (Even when talking about a room full of hundred women and one man, you have to use ils- French male domination!). Ils is also used for groups of all masculine nouns and groups of mixed masculine-feminine nouns. Elles can be used only when every single person or thing you're referring to is female or feminine.

Examples Mes frères, ils parlent tous anglais et un peu d’español. Etienne et Robert, ils parlent français. Jacqueline et Philippe, ils parlent français et anglais. Fatima et Marie-Christine, elles parlent français, arabe et anglais.

FIN