Reflexive 

ex. Je m'achète une pomme

Me, Te, Se, Nous, Vous, Se + Verb

The reflexive tense is used to describe an action that someone performs on themselves. For example, “je m’achete…” means “I bought myself…” and “elles se baignent” means “they took themselves for a swim”.

*The reflexive tense is often confused with direct and indirect object pronouns. The easiest way to differentiate reflexive verbs from pronouns is to check to whom the subject is doing the action. In reflexive verbs, the subject is always doing the action to themselves (il se lave, tu te leve, etc.) while direct and indirect object pronouns are used when someone is doing something to someone else (je lui donne la pomme, les infants m’aiment).

Direct object pronouns

ex. Je te vois

Me, Te, Le, La, Nous, Vous, Les + Verb

Direct object pronouns are used to avoid repeating pronouns; for example, “te” in “je te vois” is a replacement for “toi” (you).

Indirect object pronouns

ex. Je te parle

Me, Te, Lui, Nous, Vous, Leur + Verb

Unlike direct object pronouns, which replace repetition of the subject/noun, indirect object pronouns replace “to (someone)”. For example, the “te” in “je te parle” is a replacement for “à toi” in “je parle à toi”.

Disjunctive

ex. Je vais chez toi

Verb + Preposition/Être + Moi, Toi, Soi (oneself, a form of “on”), Lui, Elle, Nous, Vous, Eux, Elles

Disjunctive pronouns are used after a preposition, for emphasis, with etre (to be), and in compound subjects where the subject is composed of multiple people (ex., lui et moi). When the disjunctive is used for emphasis, it is often put at the front of the sentence (ex., Moi, j’adore les chiens). For other uses, they can be in any part of the sentence.

Written by JuWon

Curated by Quinn Luong