Lesson 8 Flashcards Preview

The direct object here is the feminine noun chanson. The direct object pronoun la is used to replace chanson in order to avoid repeating it in the second sentence. Recall that object pronouns should be placed before the conjugated verb.

The direct object here is the masculine proper noun Henri. The direct object pronoun le is used to replace Henri in order to avoid its repetition in the second sentence.

The direct object here is feminine – Marie. In the second sentence, her name is replaced by the direct object pronoun la, which comes before the conjugated verb.

The direct object pronoun goes before the conjugated auxiliary verb in the past tense. Also note that the pronoun is really te (for either gender), but that it changes here to t’ in front of a vowel.

Recall that when a verb is conjugated with the auxiliary verb avoir, its past participle usually does not change (to agree with the subject). However, when a verb conjugated in a compound tense (even an avoir verb) is preceded by its direct object, its participle agrees with the direct object.

The past participle of acheter agrees in number and gender with the preceding direct object, the feminine plural voitures, which is represented in the second sentence by a direct object pronoun, les. Note the placement of that pronoun before the auxiliary verb.

to take - emporter, emmener. The former should be applied to portable objects, while the latter should be applied to people or things you can’t carry.

to bring - apporter, amener. The former should be applied to portable objects, while the latter should be applied to people or things you can’t carry.

Note the agreement of the participle with the preceding direct object pronoun.

to pick up, to collect - ramasser. In a negative sentence containing an object pronoun, the negative ne precedes the object pronoun, which precedes the conjugated verb. The negative pas comes in-between the conjugated verb (a) and the past participle.

to pick up, to collect, to recover - récupérer. This verb can mean the same thing as ramasser – “to collect” or “to pick up.” That said, it can also mean “to recover” or “to recuperate.”

own (adjective) - propre. Recall that this word can also mean “clean”; the determining factor is the placement around the noun. Used before the noun, propre takes on the possessive meaning; used after, it means “clean.”

Note how the past participle agrees with the preceding direct object pronoun. The pronoun is really la, but it’s changed to l’ because the auxiliary verb begins with a vowel.

In this negative sentence, the negative ne comes before the direct object pronoun, which precedes the verb, which is finally followed by the negative pas.

Note how the ne comes first in this negative sentence, preceding the direct object pronoun, nous. Pas follows the conjugated auxiliary verb. Finally, the participle agrees with its preceding object pronoun.

Note the placement of the adverb in between the auxiliary verb and the participle. Recall that short adverbs should follow the conjugated verb.

Note the use of a direct object pronoun before an infinitive here. Whenever an object pronoun is the object of an infinitive, it should precede that infinitive.

This is an exceptional case in which the participle (pu) does not agree with the preceding (plural) direct object. This is because the complementary infinitive, finir, is what really applies to the direct object.

Note the special use here of the pronoun le, which is used to replace an adjective. Le does not change to match the gender and number of the adjective it replaces. Le can also be used this way to replace a complete idea.

to give - donner. This verb is conjugated in the present tense as follows: je donne, tu donnes, il/elle/on donne, nous donnons, vous donnez, ils/elles donnent.

The indirect object of the verb parler is Marie. She is the person/thing to or for whom the action of the verb occurs. Notice how in the first sentence, Marie is preceded by à, which is the sign of an indirect object. In the second sentence, à Marie is replaced by the indirect object pronoun lui, which goes before the verb instead of after it.

Jean is the indirect object in these sentences, as he is given the book, which is the direct object. One way to make this distinction is to ask “What?” and “To whom?” What is given? The book (direct object). To whom is the book given? Jean (indirect object). In the second sentence, à Jean is replaced by the indirect object pronoun lui, which goes before the verb.

Here, the speaker is the person at whom the action of the verb parler is directed. The indirect object pronoun me eliminates the need for the prepositional phrase à moi: essentially, the awkward Elle parle à moi is replaced with the more natural Elle me parle.

The indirect object pronoun lui applies to third-person singular indirect objects of both genders – both to “him” and to “her.” The French sentence would remain the same even if the English were, “I speak to him a lot.”

Note how this sentence is in the past tense. In compound tenses, the indirect object pronoun comes before the (conjugated) auxiliary verb – just like direct object pronouns do.

Note how there are two verbs in this sentence. The indirect object pronoun vous is placed before the second verb, the infinitive donner, because that is the verb that applies to the indirect object.

There are some French verbs that do not allow preceding indirect object pronouns. Penser à is one of them: you cannot say Tu leur penses. Instead, à should be kept after the verb, followed by the appropriate disjunctive pronoun, which in this case is eux.

The expression faire attention à does not allow preceding indirect object pronouns. You cannot say Je lui fais attention. Instead, à should be kept after the verb, followed by the appropriate disjunctive pronoun, lui.