Published February 9, 2022 · Updated May 29, 2026 — By French teacher David Issokson
This lesson provides a complete overview of French object pronouns. French direct object pronouns include le, la and les for “him”, “her”, “it” and “them”. Indirect object pronouns include lui and leur for “to him”, “to her” and “to them”. Other essential object pronouns are y and en. Keep reading to master how these small but important words work in everyday French.
✅ Direct object pronouns
✅ Indirect object pronouns
✅ Y and en
✅ Double object pronouns
French object pronouns in a nutshell
Object pronouns are words that replace nouns.
I eat the pizza → I eat it
I look at the lady → I look at her
French has four main object pronoun groups:
- Direct object pronouns: used with verbs not followed by a preposition
- Indirect object pronouns: used with verbs followed by à
- y: replaces inanimate nouns, ideas and places after à
- en: replaces inanimate nouns and ideas after de
Je vois le garçon. Je le vois.
I see the boy. I see him.
Je parle à la fille. Je lui parle.
I speak to the girl. I speak to her.
Je pense à mes vacances. J’y pense.
I’m thinking about my vacation. I’m thinking about it.
J’ai besoin de la voiture. J’en ai besoin.
I need the car. I need it.
Direct object pronouns
A direct object receives the action of the verb directly. There is no preposition between the verb and the noun.
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| me (m’) — me | nous — us |
| te (t’) — you | vous — you |
| le (l’) — him / it | les — them |
| la (l’) — her / it |
For me, te, nous and vous, the direct and indirect object pronouns are the same.
Je te regarde.
I look at you.
Vous me regardez.
You look at me.
Ils vous regardent.
They look at you.
Nous vous regardons.
We look at you.
The following common verbs are not followed by à and take a direct object:
- aimer — to like, love
- acheter — to buy
- écouter — to listen to
- attendre — to wait for
- inviter — to invite
- comprendre — to understand
- prendre — to take
- connaître — to know
Direct object pronouns for him, her, it and them
Direct object pronouns agree in gender and number with the noun they replace.
Je regarde le film. Je le regarde.
I watch the movie. I watch it.
Tu regardes la fille. Tu la regardes.
You look at the girl. You look at her.
Je connais Jean. Je le connais.
I know Jean. I know him.
Tu connais Sylvie. Tu la connais.
You know Sylvie. You know her.
Je connais Jean et Sylvie. Je les connais.
I know Jean and Sylvie. I know them.
Negation rule for direct object pronouns
Place ne…pas around the object pronoun and the verb.
Je ne mange pas le steak. Je ne le mange pas.
I do not eat the steak. I do not eat it.
Je ne connais pas Marc. Je ne le connais pas.
I do not know Marc. I do not know him.
Passé composé rule for direct object pronouns
In the passé composé, the direct object pronoun comes before the auxiliary verb.
The past participle agrees in gender and number when the direct object pronoun comes before the verb.
J’ai mangé le pain. Je l’ai mangé.
I ate the bread. I ate it.
J’ai mangé la pizza. Je l’ai mangée.
I ate the pizza. I ate it.
J’ai mangé les frites. Je les ai mangées.
I ate the French fries. I ate them.
Imperative rule for direct object pronouns
In affirmative commands, the object pronoun comes after the verb with a hyphen.
me and te become moi and toi.
Regarde-moi !
Look at me!
Ne me regarde pas !
Do not look at me!
Mange-le !
Eat it!
Ne le mange pas !
Do not eat it!
Direct object pronouns preceding an infinitive
Direct object pronouns come before infinitives.
In negative sentences (negation), ne… pas wraps around the conjugated verb.
Je vais manger le gâteau. Je vais le manger.
I’m going to eat the cake. I’m going to eat it.
Je ne vais pas manger la pizza. Je ne vais pas la manger.
I’m not going to eat the pizza. I’m not going to eat it.
Indirect object pronouns
Indirect object pronouns replace nouns used with verbs followed by à.
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| me (m’) — to me | nous — to us |
| te (t’) — to you | vous — to you |
| lui — to him / to her | leur — to them |
For me, te, nous and vous, the direct and indirect object pronouns are the same.
Je te parle.
I’m speaking to you.
Vous me parlez.
You’re speaking to me.
Ils vous parlent.
They’re speaking to you.
Nous vous parlons.
We’re speaking to you.
The following common verbs are followed by à and take an indirect object pronoun:
- parler à quelqu’un — to speak to somebody
- répondre à quelqu’un — to answer somebody
- écrire à quelqu’un — to write to somebody
- donner quelque chose à quelqu’un — to give something to somebody
- envoyer quelque chose à quelqu’un — to send something to somebody
- expliquer quelque chose à quelqu’un — to explain something to somebody
- demander quelque chose à quelqu’un — to ask somebody for something
Indirect object pronouns for him, her and them
The indirect object pronouns for “to him”, “to her” and “to them” are lui and leur.
lui means both “to him” and “to her”.
Je parle à mon frère. Je lui parle.
I speak to my brother. I speak to him.
Je parle à ma soeur. Je lui parle.
I speak to my sister. I speak to her.
Je parle à mon frère et à ma soeur. Je leur parle.
I speak to my brother and sister. I speak to them.
Negation rule for indirect object pronouns
The negation rule is the same as with direct object pronouns. Place ne…pas around the object pronoun and the verb.
Je ne parle pas à Marc. Je ne lui parle pas.
I’m not speaking to Marc. I’m not speaking to him.
Je ne parle pas à Marc et Sylvie. Je ne leur parle pas.
I’m not speaking to Marc and Sylvie. I’m not speaking to them.
Passé composé rule for indirect object pronouns
Unlike direct object pronouns, indirect object pronouns do not make the past participle agree.
J’ai parlé à Marc. Je lui ai parlé.
I spoke to Marc. I spoke to him.
J’ai parlé à Sylvie. Je lui ai parlé.
I spoke to Sylvie. I spoke to her.
Imperative rule for indirect object pronouns
In affirmative commands, the indirect object pronoun comes after the verb with a hyphen.
me and te become moi and toi.
Parle-moi !
Speak to me!
Ne me parle pas !
Do not speak to me!
Parle-lui !
Speak to him / her!
Ne lui parle pas !
Do not speak to him / her!
Indirect object pronouns and infinitives
Indirect object pronouns come before infinitives.
In negative sentences, ne… pas wraps around the conjugated verb.
Je vais parler à Marc. Je vais lui parler.
I’m going to speak to Marc. I’m going to speak to him.
Je ne vais pas parler à Sylvie. Je ne vais pas lui parler.
I’m not going to speak to Sylvie. I’m not going to speak to her.
Indirect object pronouns y and en
The pronouns y and en replace inanimate things and ideas.
Use y for verbs followed by à.
Use en for verbs followed by de.
Examples with y
Je pense à ton idée. J’y pense.
I’m thinking about your idea. I’m thinking about it.
Je réponds à la question. J’y réponds.
I’m answering the question. I’m answering it.
Je m’habitue à la situation. Je m’y habitue.
I’m getting used to the situation. I’m getting used to it.
Examples with en
Je parle de la situation. J’en parle.
I’m talking about the situation. I’m talking about it.
J’ai besoin de l’ordinateur. J’en ai besoin.
I need the computer. I need it.
Je me souviens de mes vacances. Je m’en souviens.
I remember my vacation. I remember it.
Common expressions and usages of y and en
The pronouns y and en also appear in many common everyday expressions.
Y when used with aller
With aller, y means “there”.
Je vais à la banque. J’y vais.
I’m going to the bank. I’m going there.
Vas-y !
Go ahead!
Allez-y !
Go ahead!
En when used with vouloir and faire
With partitive nouns, en can mean “some” or “some of it”.
Je veux du fromage. J’en veux.
I want some cheese. I want some.
Je veux de la soupe. J’en veux.
I want some soup. I want some.
Je veux des fraises. J’en veux.
I want some strawberries. I want some.
The verb faire is also commonly used with de + noun, especially for activities.
Je fais du yoga. J’en fais.
I do yoga. I do it.
Je fais de la méditation. J’en fais.
I do meditation. I do it.
Je fais des exercices. J’en fais.
I do exercises. I do them.
Double object pronouns
When two object pronouns appear together, the general order is:
| me | ||||||||
| te | le, l' | lui | ||||||
| se | before | la, l' | before | leur | before | y | before | en |
| nous | les | |||||||
| vous |
Most of the time, the indirect object pronoun comes before the direct object pronoun.
The main exception is when both pronouns are third person. In that case, the direct object pronoun comes first.
Indirect object pronoun followed by direct object pronoun
Il me donne la pizza. Il me la donne.
He gives me the pizza. He gives it to me.
Je vous envoie la lettre. Je vous l’envoie.
I send you the letter. I send it to you.
Il nous dit la vérité. Il nous la dit.
He tells us the truth. He tells it to us.
Two third-person object pronouns
Il explique la situation à son ami. Il la lui explique.
He explains the situation to his friend. He explains it to him.
Elle offre le cadeau à son fils. Elle le lui offre.
She offers the gift to her son. She offers it to him.
Il sert un repas à ses amis. Il le leur sert.
He serves a meal to his friends. He serves it to them.
Examples with y and en
Elle m’amène à la plage. Elle m’y amène.
She brings me to the beach. She brings me there.
Il te donne du fromage. Il t’en donne.
He gives you some cheese. He gives you some.
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