Personal pronouns: "je, tu, il/elle/on, nous, vous, ils/elles"
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The personal pronouns are: "je, tu, il/elle/on, nous, vous, ils/elles"
Choose the right subject pronoun (who is doing the action?)
- Singular: je (I), tu (you – informal), il (he/it), elle (she/it), on (we/people/one)
- Plural: nous (we), vous (you – plural or formal), ils (they – at least one male / mixed group), elles (they – all female)
Self-check: Before you speak, ask: How many people? + Is it formal? + Is the group mixed or all female?
“Tu” vs “Vous”: the decision you make most often
| What you want to do |
Use |
Typical context |
Example |
| Talk to one person informally |
tu |
friends, family, peers who agreed to be informal |
Tu vas bien ? |
| Talk to one person politely |
vous |
clients, manager, new colleague, strangers |
Comment allez-vous ? |
| Talk to several people |
vous |
any group (formal or informal) |
Vous êtes prêts ? |
- Practical rule at work: when in doubt, start with vous. You can switch to tu if the other person suggests it.
Gender and plural: “ils” or “elles”?
- elles = a group of women only: Elles sont en réunion.
- ils = a mixed group or men only (even with one man): Ils sont au bureau.
Common trap: Marie + Paul = ils (not elles).
“On”: two useful meanings (and why it feels so common)
- On = informal spoken “we” (instead of nous): On est en retard. (= We’re late.)
- On = “people in general / someone / they” (impersonal): On mange à midi. (= People eat at noon.)
Important: even when on means “we”, the verb is usually 3rd person singular (like il/elle).
Match pronoun + verb: a quick accuracy checklist
- Pick the pronoun (je/tu/il/elle/on/nous/vous/ils/elles).
- Check formality: tu vs vous.
- Check group type: mixed group → ils; all women → elles.
- Then conjugate the verb for that pronoun.
| Pronoun |
With “être” (to be) |
With “aller” (to go / to be doing) |
| je |
je suis |
je vais |
| tu |
tu es |
tu vas |
| il / elle / on |
il/elle/on est |
il/elle/on va |
| nous |
nous sommes |
nous allons |
| vous |
vous êtes |
vous allez |
| ils / elles |
ils/elles sont |
ils/elles vont |
Mini self-test: can you choose the pronoun fast?
- Talking to a close colleague you know well: tu or vous?
- Talking to a client: tu or vous?
- Referring to “Marie and her team” (all women): ils or elles?
- Casual spoken French: “We’re meeting tomorrow” → Nous nous voyons… or On se voit…?
Goal: you should be able to decide the pronoun first, then the verb form becomes much easier.
- Pronouns reflect the gender (masculine or feminine) and the number (singular or plural) of the subject.
- "Tu" is used in an informal situation.
- "Vous" is used to speak to several people or in a formal situation to show respect to one person (politeness).
| Singulier (Singular) | Pluriel (Plural) | Exemples (Examples) |
|---|
| Je (I) | Nous (We) | Je suis Monsieur Martin (I am Mr Martin) Nous sommes italiens (We are Italian) |
| Tu (You (informal, singular)) | Vous (You (formal singular / plural)) | Salut François, tu vas bien ? (Hi François, are you doing well?) Bonjour Monsieur, comment allez-vous ? (Hello Sir, how are you?) Vous jouez tous les trois. ( You three are playing.) |
| Il / Elle / On (He / She / One (we/people)) | Ils / Elles (They (masc./mixed) / They (fem.)) | Comment s'appelle-t-elle ? (What is her name?) On est français (We are French) Ils sont avec Monsieur et Madame Dubois. (They are with Mr and Mrs Dubois. ) |
Exceptions!
- The pronoun "on" can be used in spoken French to replace "nous" or impersonally, to talk about people in general: "On mange à midi".
- We use the pronoun "ils" to talk about a group of people made up of men and women (even if there is only one man in the group).
