There two very useful pronouns in French which allow of replacing repetitive nouns and shortening sentences to minimum. However, learning how to use them properly may take some time and practice. This is because they relate to identical aspects of the language and may be difficult to pronounce in the beginning.
How to Use Pronoun En in French
Pronoun “en” in French is used in the following cases.
To substitute a noun preceded by an indefinite article:
- J’ai un livre – J’en ai un
- Tu as une maison – Tu en as une
As can be seen for the above examples, the pronoun is placed always before the verb/predicate and the indefinite article is repeated right after the verb/predicate. However, if pronoun “en” is used with respect to an indefinite article in plural – the article is not repeated after the verb/predicate or any other part of the sentence: Elle as des livres – Elle en a.
To substitute a noun preceded by a partial article:
- Il mange de la viande – Il en mange
To substitute a quantitative expression:
- Ella a beaucoup de livres – Elle en a beaucoup
In this case, again, the pronoun “en” is used right before the verb/predicate and the quantitative expression is repeated right after the verb/predicate – while the preposition (in this case “de”) is left out;
To substitute a noun preceded by a number:
- Elle a trois voitures – Elle en a trois
The pronoun “en”, just like in the previous example, is situated before the verb/predicate and the number – originally defining the left out noun – is repeated right after the verb/predicate.
How to Use Pronoun Y in French
The pronoun “y” is used in the following cases:
To substitute a preposition of place, except for “de”:
- Je vais a Paris – J’y vais
To substitute indirect object introduced by the pronoun “a”:
- Je m’interesse a l’histoire – Je m’y interesse
Like in the above example, the pronoun “y” will be used together with the indirect object in a contracted form.
Pronoun “y” is never used as a substitute of person/people and it’s omitted in future tense (futur simple), as well as conditional phrases (conditionnel): J’irai a Paris – J’irai.
Order of Pronouns En and Y in a Sentence
When used in complex sentences, together or separately, these pronouns are used in the following order:
- Always before verb/predicate.
- If there are two verbs/predicates in a sentence, the pronouns are used right before the one which is in the infinitive form.
- At the beginning of the sentence if inversion occurs – Tu en as une? – En as-tu une?
- The pronoun “y” is used before “en”, and direct and indirect objects are used before the pronoun “y”.
While using pronouns “en” and “y” in either speech or writing, it’s important to remember that “y” never relates to persons, and that indefinite articles, numbers, and quantitative expressions are repeated after "en" and the verb that follows it.
 |
