Edexcel A-Level French (9FR0) · Grammar backbone 3 of 10 — Pronouns in depth
A-Level Grammar
Pronouns in depth
Pronouns make your French flow — they let you say it, him, them, some, there without repeating nouns. At A-Level you need the full set: direct and indirect objects, y and en, the correct order when several stack up, their position in the imperative, and the relative pronouns that link clauses.
le / la / les · lui / leur · y · en+ the relatives: qui · que · dont · où · lequel
Work through each screen and answer the questions — some ask you to choose, some to produce. Collect ⭐ and press Start.
The two object sets
Direct vs indirect objects
A direct object pronoun replaces a noun with no preposition; an indirect object replaces a noun introduced by à (to someone). The two sets overlap but split at the third person:
Direct:me / te / le / la / nous / vous / les — Je le vois ("I see him/it").
Indirect:me / te / lui / nous / vous / leur — Je lui parle ("I speak to him/her").
The split: third-person direct = le / la / les; third-person indirect = lui / leur. Get that pair right and you're most of the way there.
Quick check
"the man who speaks"
?Which relative pronoun fills the gap? L'homme ___ parle ("the man who speaks").
The two little adverbs
y and en
Two special pronouns replace whole phrases:
y replaces à + a thing or a place: Je pense à mon travail → j'y pense; Je vais à Paris → j'y vais ("I go there").
en replaces de + a thing, or a quantity: Je parle de mon projet → j'en parle; J'ai des pommes → j'en ai ("I have some").
Memory hook:y ↔ à (to it / there); en ↔ de (of it / some).
Quick check
"I have some"
?Which correctly says "I have some" (replacing des pommes)?
Position · Step 1
Where the pronoun goes
Object pronouns sit directly before the verb they belong to — before the auxiliary in a compound tense, and before the infinitive if one governs them:
Je le vois. — I see him. (before the verb)
Je l'ai vu. — I saw him. (before the auxiliary)
Je vais le voir. — I'm going to see him. (before the infinitive)
Il m'en a parlé. — He spoke to me about it.
Exception (imperative affirmative): in a positive command the pronouns follow the verb and are joined by hyphens — more on that shortly.
Position · Step 2
The order of multiple pronouns
When two pronouns stack up before the verb, they line up in a fixed order:
me/te/se/nous/vous → le/la/les → lui/leur → y → enje le lui donne · il m'en a parlé
Je le lui donne. — I give it to him. (le before lui)
Il m'en a parlé. — He spoke to me about it. (me before en)
Watch the third person: the direct le/la/les comes before the indirect lui/leur — the opposite way round from what English word order suggests.
Sort it
Fill the gap
Quick check
"I give it to him"
?Which correctly orders the pronouns in "I give it to him" (it = le livre)?
Type it
Your turn — two pronouns
1Translate "I give it (m.) to him" into French (use le + lui + donner).
Hint: subject + direct le + indirect lui + verb.
Position · the imperative
Affirmative commands
In a positive command the pronouns move to after the verb, joined by hyphens, and me / te become moi / toi:
Donne-le-moi ! — Give it to me!
Dis-le-lui ! — Tell it to him!
But negative commands revert: the pronouns go back before the verb — Ne me le donne pas. ("Don't give it to me.")
Quick check
"Give it to me!"
?Which is the correct affirmative command for "Give it to me!" (it = m.) — from donner?
Sort it
Direct or indirect?
Sort each pronoun by whether it is a direct object or an indirect object (à…).
Direct object
Indirect object (à…)
Linking clauses
The relative pronouns
Relative pronouns join a second clause onto a noun. The choice depends on the pronoun's job in that clause:
qui — subject (who / which): l'homme qui parle.
que — object (that / which): le livre que je lis.
dont — of which / whose (replaces de): le livre dont j'ai besoin.
où — where / when: la ville où je vis.
lequel / laquelle — which (after a preposition): la table sur laquelle….
ce qui / ce que — what (with no named noun): ce que je veux.
qui vs que: if the relative is doing the verb → qui; if it is receiving it → que. Que elides to qu' before a vowel; qui never does.
Game · Match
Match the relative to its use
Tap a relative pronoun on the left, then its use / meaning on the right.
RELATIVE
qui
que
dont
où
ce qui
lequel
USE / MEANING
where / when
subject (who/which)
which (after prep)
object (that/which)
what (subject)
of which / whose
Type it
Your turn — subject relative
2Which relative pronoun completes "the man who…" — l'homme ___ (subject)?
Hint: the relative is doing the verb, so it's the subject form.
Type it
Your turn — object relative
3Which relative pronoun completes "the book that I read" — le livre ___ je lis (object)?
Hint: here the relative is the object of je lis, so use the object form.
The one that hides a preposition
dont — "of which / whose"
Use dont whenever the missing link is de — after verbs like avoir besoin de, parler de, or to mean "whose":
Le livre dont j'ai besoin. — The book (that) I need. (avoir besoin de)
La femme dont je parle. — The woman I'm talking about. (parler de)
L'auteur dont le livre est célèbre. — The author whose book is famous.
The test: if you could rebuild the clause with de (j'ai besoin de ce livre), the relative is dont.
Quick check
"the book I need"
?Which relative pronoun fits? Le livre ___ j'ai besoin (from avoir besoin de).
Type it
Your turn — "of which / whose"
4Write the relative pronoun that means "of which / whose" (it replaces de).
Hint: the four-letter relative used with parler de, avoir besoin de…
Type it
Your turn — "some (of it)"
5Translate "I have some (of it)" into French — use en + avoir.
Hint: en (of it / some) sits before the verb — j'___ ai.