Subject Pronouns
Subject pronouns are always the subject of the clause (often the sentence) that they are in. Being pronouns, they replace the specific names of nouns. The subject pronouns in English are:
| | Singular | Plural |
| 1st Person | I | we |
| 2nd Person | you | you |
3rd Person | he
she
it | they |
Some notes:
1. The word you is in the chart twice because it is used for both the singular and the plural second persons. In English, whether a person is talking to one person or more than one person, they still use the same word to address them. In many other languages, including French, this is not the case; instead there are two different words for the second person pronouns - one for the singular and one for the plural.
Examples of subject pronouns in English:
-I will need a ride. Do you know where my parents are?
-They went to the store.
-It's almost three o'clock. They were supposed to be back by now.
French subject pronouns
| | Singular | Plural |
| 1st Person | je | nous |
| 2nd Person | tu | vous |
3rd Person | il
elle
on | ils
elles |
Some notes:
1. The word for I, which is je, is only capitalized if it starts a sentence. When je is followed by a word that starts with a vowel or an h mueta, it becomes j'. This is called �lision.
2. There are two ways to express the English subject pronoun you, but it is not quite as simple as just singulars and plurals. Tu is used to address one person informally. Vous is used to address two people, whether formally or informally, and it is also used to address one person formally. Use vous when talking to people of authority, people who are strangers, etc. Tu is used to talk to animals, children, and people you are close to or are considered to be on equal footing with (classmates, etc.). It is rude to refer to someone such as your teacher or a stranger by using tu. It is a bit odd to refer to you pet using vous.
3. On does not mean it. On is a pronoun used when talking about people in general. In English we usually express this using the words one or you. (One is the grammatically correct way to do this.) On is also used sometimes when in English we would use the first person plural. Additionally sometimes on is used to avoid using the passive. A few examples:
On peux acheter des achats au supermarch�.
You can buy groceries at the supermarket.
Comment arrive-t-on � l'a�roport?
How does one get to the airport?
Ici on parle fran�ais.
French is spoken here.
4. It is expressed using il if the noun is masculine and elle if the noun is feminine. So il can mean he OR it, and elle can mean she OR it. Likewise, when they refers to things rather than people, use ils if the things are masculine and elles if the things are feminine. If some in the group are masculine and some are feminine, always use ils.
5. Similarly, when talking about people, ils refers to a group of males, elles refers to a group of females, and when referring to a group of some males and some females, always use ils.
a. When a word in French starts with an h, the h is classified as either h aspir� or h muet. Neither h is ever pronounced, but words that start with h aspir� do not make contractions with words ending if vowel sounds such as je, le, la, de, ne, me, te, se, etc; words that start with h muet do make such contractions. This kind of contraction is called �lision. Some say that whether a word starts with an h aspir� or an h muet depends on whether its roots are Latin or germanic; however most people cannot really tell that by looking at the word. Much like learning a noun's gender, it is best to learn whether a word starts with an h aspir� or an h muet when you first learn that word. A few examples:
H aspir�
le haricot - bean
la haine - hatred
le hibou - owl
la houille - coal
H muet
j'habite �� - I live (reside) in�
s'habiller - to dress oneself
l'h�pital - hospital
l'homme - man