French 1.5. Subject Personal Pronouns

Subject personal pronouns in French serve the same function as their English counterparts by pointing out who carries out the action of the verb.

The Special Pronoun “On”

The special pronoun “on” in French can mean “we,” “one,” or “they,” especially in passive constructions. For example, “On va à la plage aujourd’hui” (We go to the beach today), “On parle français ici” (We/They speak French here), etc.

Note that the pronoun “on” uses the third-person singular conjugation.

Informal “Tu” vs. Formal “Vous”

There are two forms of the singular “you” in French.

The first is the informal “tu,” which we use with familiar people (e.g., child, relative, friend, peer, etc.).

The second is the formal “vous,” which we use with older people and with people we are not familiar with to show respect.

The pronoun “vous” is used for all second-person plural forms: formal and informal.

The Equivalent of “it” in French

The third-person singular pronouns “il” and “elle” are also used as the equivalent to the English subject pronoun “it,” when referring to a masculine or feminine object. When referring to a statement or a fact, we often use the masculine pronoun “il,” e.g., “il est important” (it is important).

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