B1 · The pronouns
Two pronouns at once
A fixed order, and no ear to check it against.
When several pronouns meet, they line up in a fixed order in front of the verb: me/te/nous/vous, then le/la/les, then lui/leur, then y, then en. English never stacks object pronouns before a verb at all, so there is no instinct to import and nothing to unlearn either — the order simply has to be memorised, and it cannot be checked by ear.
A way to hold it: the person before the thing — except for lui and leur, which slip behind the direct object. Il me le donne but je le lui ai dit.
In the affirmative imperative everything turns round: the pronouns go behind the verb with hyphens, and me becomes moi — donne-le-moi. English says «give it to me» and keeps the «to»; French drops the preposition and welds the words together instead. In the negative imperative they go back in front as if nothing had happened: ne me le donne pas.
Die Form
| He gives it to me. | Il me le donne. |
| I told him so. | Je le lui ai dit. |
| There are three of them. | Il y en a trois. |
| Give it to me. | Donne-le-moi. |
| Do not give it to me. | Ne me le donne pas. |
Die Regeln im Einzelnen
me, te, nous, vous come before le, la, les.
Elle nous les montre.She is showing them to us.
lui and leur come after le, la, les.
Je le leur explique.I am explaining it to them.
y comes before en, and both come last.
Il y en a assez.There is enough of it.
In the affirmative imperative they follow the verb.
Dis-le-moi.Tell me.
Woran man es erkennt
- donner
- dire
- montrer
- expliquer
Beispielsätze
Ce livre, je te le prête.That book, I will lend it to you.
La réponse ? Je la lui ai envoyée.The answer? I sent it to him.
Des places ? Il y en a encore.Seats? There are still some.
Ne le leur dis pas.Do not tell them.
Die typisch deutsche Falle
Aufgepasst
The order is not a matter of emphasis; it is fixed. Je le lui ai dit and never je lui le ai dit. English gives you no help here, because «I told it to him» puts both after the verb and keeps them in the order you chose. The one thing that does transfer is the imperative: «give it to me» has the same sequence as donne-le-moi, minus the «to».
Person before thing — except lui and leur, which go last.
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