A2.37 - Looking for a job

The imperative: object pronouns

L'impératif: pronoms compléments

Utilisez l’impératif avec pronoms compléments comme le, moi, en pour éviter des répétitions en donnant un ordre, ex: donne-le, envoie-moi.

(Use the imperative with object pronouns like le, moi, en to avoid repetition when giving an order, e.g.: donne-le, envoie-moi.)

What changes in the affirmative imperative (commands)

In French, when you give a positive command (imperative affirmatif), object pronouns move to the end of the verb.

  • Normal sentence: Tu me donnes la réponse.
  • Command: Donne-moi la réponse.

Key idea: in a positive command, the pronoun is after the verb, joined with a hyphen.

Build it step by step (a reliable method)

  1. Start with the verb in the imperative: Donne / Prends / Envoie / Répète…
  2. Ask: “What is given/taken/sent?” → choose le / la / les (or en).
  3. Ask: “To whom?” → choose moi / toi / lui / nous / vous / leur (or y).
  4. Attach pronouns with hyphens after the verb.

Pronoun order after the verb (most common pattern)

When you have two pronouns after the verb in a positive command, the order is usually:

1st 2nd Example
le / la / les moi / toi / lui / nous / vous / leur Donne-la-moi.
(Give it to me.)

So you get: verb + (le/la/les) + (person)

  • Donne-la-moi immédiatement.
  • Donne-la-lui demain.
  • Envoyez-les-vous. (rare in real life, but grammatically correct)

The hyphen is not optional

In writing, you must connect the verb and pronoun(s) with -.

  • ✅ Donne-la-moi.
  • ❌ Donne la moi
  • ❌ Donne moi la (wrong position and missing hyphen)

Special attention: en and y with “tu” commands

With en or y, French keeps the -s in the tu form (even when it normally disappears).

Correct Why
Prends-en deux. en → keep -s + hyphen
Vas-y tout de suite. y → keep -s + hyphen

Common mistakes:

  • ❌ Prend-en → ✅ Prends-en
  • ❌ Va-y → ✅ Vas-y

Quick self-check before you answer

  • 1. Is it a positive command? → pronoun goes after the verb.
  • 2. Did you add the hyphen?
  • 3. Two pronouns? → le/la/les comes before the person pronoun.
  • 4. Using en / y with tu? → keep the verb’s -s (Prends-en, Vas-y).

Mini models you can reuse in professional contexts

  • Envoie-le-moi ce soir. (Send it to me tonight.)
  • Donne-la-lui demain. (Give it to him/her tomorrow.)
  • Prends-les pour nous. (Take them for us.)
  • Prends-en deux exemplaires. (Take two copies.)
  • Vas-y tout de suite. (Go for it right away.)
  1. The object pronoun always comes after the verb.
  2. There is always a "-" between the verb and the object pronoun.
  3. With the pronouns en or y, verbs keep the s (Prends-en ; Vas-y)
FormForm without pronounsExample
Donner + me + laDonne-moi la réponse immédiatement. (Give me the answer immediately.)Donne-la-moi immédiatement. (Give it to me immediately.)
Prendre + le + nousPrends les dossiers pour nous. (Take the files for us.)Prends-les pour nous. (Take them for us.)
Donner + lui + laDonne la clé à lui demain. (Give him the key tomorrow.)Donne-la-lui demain. (Give it to him tomorrow.)
Envoyer + vous + lesEnvoyez les invitations à vous. (Send the invitations to you.)Envoyez-les-vous. (Send them to yourselves.)
Répéter + nous + leRépète la question pour nous. (Repeat the question for us.)Répète-la pour nous. (Repeat it for us.)

Exercise 1: Multiple choice

Instruction: Choose the correct answer

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1. Pour ta candidature, imprime ton CV et ______ ce soir.

For your application, print your CV and ______ tonight.

2. ______ deux exemplaires et mets-les dans le dossier de candidature.

______ two copies and put them in the application file.

3. Pour l'offre d'emploi, ______ tout de suite sur le portail.

For the job offer, ______ right away on the portal.

4. ______ demain : c'est la lettre de motivation pour le recruteur.

______ tomorrow: it’s the cover letter for the recruiter.

Exercise 2: Rewrite the phrases

Instruction: Rewrite each sentence in the imperative by replacing the object/complement with the correct pronoun (le/la/les/moi/lui/nous/vous/en) placed after the verb with a hyphen. Example: Donne la clé à Paul. → Donne-la-lui.

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Show/Hide translation Show/Hide hints
  1. Donne la réponse à Marie, s’il te plaît.
    ⇒ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Example
    Donne-la-lui, s’il te plaît.
    (Give it to her, please.)
  2. Prends les documents pour nous avant la réunion.
    ⇒ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Example
    Prends-les pour nous avant la réunion.
    (Take them for us before the meeting.)
  3. Envoie le dossier à moi par e-mail ce matin.
    ⇒ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Example
    Envoie-le-moi par e-mail ce matin.
    (Send it to me by email this morning.)
  4. Montre la photo à nous maintenant.
    ⇒ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Example
    Montre-la-nous maintenant.
    (Show it to us now.)

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Marco De Faria

Master in Foreign Languages

University of Poitiers

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France


Last Updated:

Thursday, 07/05/2026 09:57