I can give a command with a pronoun: Prends-le, Coupe-les, Écris-lui, Vas-y, Prends-en, Lève-toi — put the pronoun after the verb with a hyphen and not mix up me and te with moi and toi.
Attaching the pronoun: prends-le, lève-toi
Attaching the pronoun: prends-le, lève-toi
Recipes, instructions, and advice are commands: “Take it”, “Cut them”, “Go there”. You already know the command forms: Prends ! Coupons ! Regardez ! Only one thing is new: where the pronoun goes.
In an affirmative command the pronoun comes after the verb, as in English “Take it!”, but it's joined to the verb by a hyphen: Prends-le ! Coupe-les ! Écris-lui ! The order is always verb, hyphen, pronoun, with nothing in between.
y and en work the same way: Vas-y ! Prends-en ! But before them the tu form gets its -s back: tu manges gives Manges-en !, tu verses gives Verses-en !, tu vas gives Vas-y !
In this command me and te become moi and toi: Écoute-moi ! Lève-toi ! nous and vous don't change: Reposons-nous ! Levez-vous !
Common mistakes:
• NOT “Le prends !” — the pronoun goes after the verb: Prends-le !
• NOT “Lève-te !” — Lève-toi !
• NOT “Écoute-me !” — Écoute-moi !
• NOT “Va-y !” — the -s comes back before y: Vas-y !
• NOT “Mange-en deux !” — Manges-en deux !
Commands with an object and with a pronoun
The pronoun goes after the verb and is attached to it with a hyphen.
| With a noun | With a pronoun |
|---|---|
| Prends le sel ! | Prends-le ! |
| Regarde la recette ! | Regarde-la ! |
| Coupe les légumes ! | Coupe-les ! |
| Écris à Chloé ! | Écris-lui ! |
| Va au marché ! | Vas-y ! |
| Prends du sucre ! | Prends-en ! |
me and te in an affirmative command
Only two of the four pronouns change.
| Usual form | In a command | Example |
|---|---|---|
| me | moi | Écoute-moi ! |
| te | toi | Lève-toi ! |
| nous | nous | Reposons-nous ! |
| vous | vous | Levez-vous ! |
Lesson notes
Attaching the pronoun: prends-le, lève-toi
Recipes, instructions, and advice are commands: “Take it”, “Cut them”, “Go there”. You already know the command forms: Prends ! Coupons ! Regardez ! Only one thing is new: where the pronoun goes.
In an affirmative command the pronoun comes after the verb, as in English “Take it!”, but it's joined to the verb by a hyphen: Prends-le ! Coupe-les ! Écris-lui ! The order is always verb, hyphen, pronoun, with nothing in between.
y and en work the same way: Vas-y ! Prends-en ! But before them the tu form gets its -s back: tu manges gives Manges-en !, tu verses gives Verses-en !, tu vas gives Vas-y !
In this command me and te become moi and toi: Écoute-moi ! Lève-toi ! nous and vous don't change: Reposons-nous ! Levez-vous !
Common mistakes:
• NOT “Le prends !” — the pronoun goes after the verb: Prends-le !
• NOT “Lève-te !” — Lève-toi !
• NOT “Écoute-me !” — Écoute-moi !
• NOT “Va-y !” — the -s comes back before y: Vas-y !
• NOT “Mange-en deux !” — Manges-en deux !