Grammaire: pronoms objets indirects
On étudie !
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Direct object
We have already learned about direct object pronouns (les pronoms objets directs) which is a shortcut to allows us to vary the way we communicate:
J’aime mon chat, je l’adore! (I like my cat, I love *him*!)
The object of the previous sentence follows directly the verb (What do I like? -*my cat*) and is therefore called a direct object. In French, we can replace this object with the masculine singular pronoun le (l’) to match the gender of number of ”mon chat” and is placed in front of the verb. Other direct objects pronoms include :
Pronoms objets directs:
| Français | Anglais |
|---|---|
| me, m’ | me |
| te, t’ | you |
| le, l’ | him, it |
| la, l’ | her, it |
| nous | us |
| vous | you |
| les | them |
(For a review of those, see section 5 of this textbook)
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Indirect object
An indirect object, on the other hand, is a noun that indicates *to* whom or *for* whom an action is performed. In French it is always preceded by a preposition (usually à or pour). For example:
1- Je donne le ballon à Thierry. (I give the ball to Thierry.)
[‘Thierry’ is the indirect object to the verb ‘to give to.]
2- Je l’achète pour mes parents. (I’m buying it for my parents.)
[‘My parents’ is the indirect object to the verb ‘to buy for’.]
3- Le prof explique le problème aux étudiants. (The professor explains the problem to the students.)
[‘Students’ is the indirect object to the verb ‘to explain to’.]
4- Elle donne des fleurs à sa petite-amie. (She gives her girlfriend flowers.)
[‘Girlfriend’ is the indirect object to the verb ‘to give’.]
Remember these characteristics of indirect objects:
(a) They are connected to the verb with a preposition (usually à or pour).
(b) They tell you “to whom” or “for whom” something is done.
(c) The indirect object can be found by asking “to whom?” or “for whom?”:
To whom is she giving flowers? (To her girlfriend.)
For whom am I buying it? (For my parents.)
Les pronoms objets indirects
In order to avoid repeating nouns in a series of sentences or when answering questions, you replace indirect objects with indirect object pronouns. Let’s use the 4 sentence examples above and replace the indirect objects with a pronoun:
1- Je lui donne le ballon. (I give the ball to him.)
2- Je leur achète (le dîner). (I’m buying the lunch for them.)
3- Le prof leur explique le problème. (The professor explains the problem to them.)
4- Elle lui donne des fleurs. (She gives her the flowers.)
Here are all the indirect object pronouns you need to know in French:
Pronoms d’objet indirect
| Pronoms d’objet indirect | Anglais |
|---|---|
| me, m’ | (to, for) me |
| te, t’ | (to, for) you |
| lui | (to, for) him |
| lui | (to, for) her |
| nous | (to, for) us |
| vous | (to, for) you |
| leur | (to, for) them |
| leur | (to, for) them |
- The first and second indirect object pronouns me (m’), te (t’), nous and vous are identical to the first and second person direct object pronouns me (m’), te (t’), nous and vous.
Le placement des pronoms d’objet indirect (Placement of indirect object pronouns)
Indirect object pronouns, just like reflexive and direct object pronouns, are placed before the verb it is linked with; this verb could be conjugated (examples 1, and 2 below) or left in the infinitive form if part of of such an infinitive construction (see example 3).
- Il donne le livre à nous. ➔ Il nous donne le livre. [‘donner à’]
- J’obéis à ma mère. ➔ Je lui obéis. [‘obéir à ma mère’]
- J’aime répondre à mes amis. ➔ J’aime leur répondre. [‘répondre à mes amis’]
Notice how in English, the indirect object follows the verb: He gives *us* the book, I obey *her*, I like to answer *them*.
Attention ! Don’t get used to translating from English all the time. Just because you see “for him” in the sentence I am looking for him, it does not mean that it is an indirect object. In this case, “him” is the direct object of the verb to look for. That’s why in French we would use the direct object pronoun with the verb chercher:
Je le cherche. I am looking for him.
Here are some common verbs that require indirect objects :
Verbes qui nécessitent des objets indirects
| Français | Anglais | |
|---|---|---|
| donner à | to give to | |
| prêter à | to lend to | |
| écrire à | to write to | |
| répondre à | to respond to | |
| dire à | to say to, to tell | |
| expliquer à | to explain to | |
| parler (à) | to talk, speak to | |
| téléphoner à | to phone to | |
| offrir à | to offer to | |
| acheter (à) | to buy for | |
| obéir à | to obey | |
| poser une question à | to ask a question to |
You can review and practice using indirect object pronouns at the following sites:
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Many verbs in French must be followed by the preposition à (even when we do not do the same thing in English). You need to treat the à as an integral part of these verbs.
