Part 3 - Lesson 1 - Subject pronouns

Welcome to this new part of your French journey.

Subject pronouns are the foundation of every French sentence. They tell us who is doing the action. Without them, you can’t build even the simplest sentence.

By the end of this lesson, you’ll be able to recognize, understand, and use all the French subject pronouns in real conversations.

1. The Subject Pronouns

Repeat after me:

  • je → I

  • tu → you (informal)

  • il / elle / on → he / she / one / we (informal)

  • nous → we (formal, mostly written French)

  • vous → you (formal singular or plural)

  • ils / elles → they (masculine / feminine)

👉 Important: Don’t pronounce the final s in ils or elles. They sound exactly like il or elle in the singular, unless there is a liaison (when the next word begins with a vowel). Example: ils ont sounds like il-zon.

2. Quick Tips

  • On vs. nous: In everyday spoken French, on is much more common than nous.

    • Example: On va au cafĂ© → We’re going to the cafĂ©.

    • Nous allons au cafĂ© is grammatically correct but sounds formal, like something from a textbook.

  • Always pair with a verb: Subject pronouns don’t stand alone. They are always followed by a verb.

    • je suis (I am)

    • tu as (you have)

    • il fait (he does)

3. Mini Sentences

Let’s practice some short, useful sentences. Repeat after me:

  • Je suis amĂ©ricain(e). → I am American.

  • Tu habites Ă  Paris ? → Do you live in Paris?

  • Il est fatiguĂ©. → He is tired.

  • Nous avons une voiture. → We have a car.

  • Vous parlez anglais ? → Do you speak English?

  • Elles sont Ă©tudiantes. → They are students.

👉 Notice: Vous parlez anglais ? can mean either “Do you (sir/madam) speak English?” or “Do you (all of you) speak English?” depending on context.

4. Mini Dialogue

Let’s put this into a short conversation.

— Tu es fatiguĂ© ?
(Are you tired?)

— Oui, un peu, mais je suis motivĂ©.
(Yes, a little, but I’m motivated.)

— Super, on y va ?
(Great, shall we go?)

— Oui, on est prĂȘts.
(Yes, we’re ready.)

👉 Practice both roles. First read the tu parts, then switch to vous. It’s important to get comfortable moving between formal and informal speech.

5. Practice Tips

Here are some simple exercises to reinforce this lesson:

  1. Replace the subject pronoun in a sentence:

    • Je suis
 → Tu es
 → Il est


    • This helps you see how the verb changes with each pronoun.

  2. Speak your daily life out loud:

    • Je mange. (I eat.)

    • Tu bois. (You drink.)

    • On va au cafĂ©. (We are going to the cafĂ©.)

  3. Pay attention in real life: Notice when French speakers use tu or vous. This will help you understand the cultural side of politeness.

6. A Note on Stressed Pronouns (Pronoms Toniques)

You should also know that French has another set of pronouns called pronoms toniques. These are not the subject of the sentence — instead, they are used for emphasis, or after prepositions like avec (with), pour (for), chez (at someone’s place).

Here they are:

  • moi → me

  • toi → you

  • lui / elle → him / her

  • nous → us

  • vous → you

  • eux / elles → them

Examples:

  • Moi, je suis amĂ©ricain. → Me, I am American.

  • C’est pour toi. → It’s for you.

  • Je suis avec eux. → I am with them.

👉 Don’t worry about memorizing all of these yet. For now, just remember that je, tu, il
 are subject pronouns, and moi, toi, lui
 are stressed pronouns. You’ll use them in slightly different situations, and we’ll practice them soon.

🎯 What You Can Do Now

After this lesson, you can:

  • Use the correct subject pronouns in French.

  • Build simple sentences by combining them with verbs.

  • Understand the basics of stressed pronouns and why they exist.

What’s Next

Bravo! You’ve just built the foundation for all French sentences.

In the next lesson, we’ll move on to the two “super verbs” of French: ĂȘtre (to be) and avoir (to have). Once you know these, you can say hundreds of useful things right away.

C’est trop facile ça, viens on continue ?