When there are two pronouns in a sentence, it can be challenging to decide which goes where. Here are a few simple rules.
French
English
Je le lui ai donné.
I gave it to him.
Two Object Pronouns
Rule 1: The direct object pronouns le, la, les come after the indirect object pronouns me, te, nous, vous.
French
English
Le cadeau, je te le passe.
The gift, I give it to you.
Rule 2: But the direct object pronouns le, la, les come before the indirect pronouns lui and leur.
French
English
Cette bague, je vais la lui offrir.
This ring, I'll give it to him.
Adverbial Pronouns
Rule 2: The pronouns y (there, to there) and en (some, some of) are always behind all other pronouns. If both are there, then en is at the very end.
French
English
Je lui ai donné de la confiture. Je lui en ai donné.
I gave him jam. I gave him some.
Je t'y emmène volontiers.
I'm happy to take you there with me.
Il n'y a plus de vin dans la cave. Il n'y en a plus.
There is no wine left in the cellar. There is none left there.
Regular Pronoun Order
Rule 3: In the vast majority of situations, here is how the regular pronoun order would work:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subject pronoun | me, te se, nous, vous | le, la, les | lui, leur | y, en | conjugated verb |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subject pronoun | me, te se, nous, vous | le, la, les | lui, leur | y, en | conjugated verb |
Indicative Pronoun Order
Rule 4: In the affirmative imperative sentence, pronouns follow the verb directly and are connected to it and each other with hyphens in the next order:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verb in the imperative | le, la, les | moi, toi, lui, nous, vous, leur | y, en |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Verb in the imperative | le, la, les | moi, toi, lui, nous, vous, leur | y, en |
For example:
French
English
Donne-le-moi.
Give it to me.
Stay Cautious
Two pronouns is the limit in one sentence. If the sentence requires to use more, reword it to remove the spare pronouns.
Also, stay cautious when using two pronouns in the sentence - be sure to fully understand how each French pronoun works. This way, you will avoid misunderstanding when talking to someone in French.
Quiz
1/4
Translate: I didn't see him there.
0
correct answers.