Personal pronouns in French

Read more about how to use Personal pronouns in French.
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Personal pronouns

Subject pronouns replace a person or thing.


singular
plural
1st person
je suis (I am)
nous sommes (we are)
2nd person
tu es (you are)
vous êtes (you are)
3rd person
il elle♀ est (he/she is)
ils elles♀sont (they are)


Notes:
• French has 2 forms for “you”: tu (singular and informal) and vous (plural and/or formal).
• It also has 2 different forms for “they”, ils and elles:
Ils is used for groups of men and mixed-gender groups; elles is used for groups of women.

Betty and Roger are at the bar. → They are at the bar.

Exercise 1

Complete the table below with the missing pronouns. Click on “Help me” if you need a hint.


singulier
pluriel
1re personne
suis
nous sommes
2e personne
es
vous êtes
3e personne
il / ♀ est
ils / ♀elles sont

singulier
pluriel
1re personne
je suis
nous sommes
2e personne
tu es
vous êtes
3e personne
il / ♀elle est
ils / ♀elles sont
Help me
Test yourself

Complete the table below with the missing pronouns. Click on “Help me” if you need a hint.


singulier
pluriel
1re personne
je 1 suis
nous sommes
2e personne
tu 2 es
vous êtes
3e personne
il / ♀elle 3 est
ils / ♀elles sont
1 je :

Je means “I”. It is very popular with megalomaniacs. Note that je becomes j' before a vowel sound. Examples: je suis une femme (I am a woman); j'ai 43 ans (I am 43 years old).

2 tu :

Tu means “you”. We use tu in informal settings, usually when we know the person well. Example: Nadia, tu veux une glace ? (Nadia, do you want an ice cream?).

3 elle :

Elle means “she”. Example: elle s'appelle Betty (she is called Betty).

Exercise 2

Complete the table below with the missing pronouns. Click on “Help me” if you need a hint.


singulier
pluriel
1re personne
suis
nous sommes
2e personne
es
vous êtes
3e personne
♂il / ♀ elle est
/ ♀elles sont

singulier
pluriel
1re personne
je suis
nous sommes
2e personne
tu es
vous êtes
3e personne
♂il / ♀ elle est
ils / ♀elles sont
Help me
Test yourself

Complete the table below with the missing pronouns. Click on “Help me” if you need a hint.


singulier
pluriel
1re personne
je 1 suis
nous sommes
2e personne
tu 2 es
vous êtes
3e personne
♂il / ♀ elle est
ils 3 / ♀elles sont
1 je :

Je means “I”. Note that je becomes j' before a vowel sound. Examples: je suis un adulte (I am an adult); j'ai 18 ans (I am 18 years old).

2 tu :

Tu means “you”. We use tu in informal settings, usually when we know the person well. Example: Nadia, tu es jolie (Nadia, you look pretty).

3 ils :

Ils means “they”. We use it to refer to a group of men or a mixed-gender group. I know, Victor, it's pretty sexist. Example: ils s'appellent Georges et Henri (they are called Georges and Henri); ils s'appellent Marie et Pierre (they are called Marie and Pierre).

Exercise 3

Complete the table below with the missing pronouns. Click on “Help me” if you need a hint.


singulier
pluriel
1re personne
je suis
sommes
2e personne
es
vous êtes
3e personne
♂il / ♀ elle est
♂ils / ♀ sont

singulier
pluriel
1re personne
je suis
nous sommes
2e personne
tu es
vous êtes
3e personne
♂il / ♀ elle est
♂ils / ♀elles sont
Help me
Test yourself

Complete the table below with the missing pronouns. Click on “Help me” if you need a hint.


singulier
pluriel
1re personne
je suis
nous 2 sommes
2e personne
tu 1 es
vous êtes
3e personne
♂il / ♀ elle est
♂ils / ♀elles 3 sont
1 tu :

Tu means “you”. We use tu in informal settings, usually when we know the person well. Example: tu es mon ami (you are my friend). That's nice of you to say, Victor, though we're still getting to know each other!

2 nous :

Nous means “we”. Example: mon frère et moi, nous sommes français (my brother and I, we are French).

3 elles :

We use elles (they) to refer to a group of women. Example: voici mes sœurs, elles s'appellent Marie et Adèle (these are my sisters; they are called Marie and Adèle).


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