# Subject Pronouns

https://langs123.com/en/french/pronoms/pronoms-sujets/
CEFR A0–A2 · 2026-10-24 · CC BY 4.0, langs123 contributors (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

> The subject pronouns **je**, **tu**, **il**, **elle**, **on**, **nous**, **vous**, **ils** and **elles** come before the verb. A conjugated verb always has a stated subject: **Elle** habite à Lyon. **Nous** mangeons.

## Summary

| Point | Rule | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Form | **je** / **tu** / **il** / **elle** / **nous** / **vous** / **ils** / **elles** | **Elle** habite à Nice. | She lives in Nice. |
| Elision | **je** becomes **j’** before a vowel | J’habite à Nice. | I live in Nice. |
| Tu and vous | **tu** for a friend, **vous** for politeness or several people | **Vous** parlez anglais ? | Do you speak English? |
| Il and elle | **il** for a man, **elle** for a woman | Marc est là. **Il** travaille. | Marc is here. He's working. |
| Il and elle | for a thing, the gender of the noun decides | La clé ? **Elle** est là. | The key? It is here. |
| On | **on** replaces **nous** in speech and takes the **il** form | **On** mange ensemble ? | Shall we eat together? |
| Ils | **ils** for a group of men or a mixed group | Léa et Paul sont là. **Ils** travaillent. | Léa and Paul are here. They're working. |
| On | **on** also means people in general | En France, **on** parle français. | In France, people speak French. |
| Trap | the verb never goes without its subject pronoun | **Il** est à Paris. | He is in Paris. |

## Overview

- A conjugated verb always has a subject: a pronoun or a noun. **Je** parle. / **Léa** parle. (I speak. / Léa speaks.)
- The subject pronoun comes before the verb. **Nous** habitons à Lyon. / **Ils** arrivent. (We live in Lyon. / They are arriving.)
- To choose between tu and vous, see Forms of Address: tu and vous.
- In a question with inversion, the pronoun follows the verb: see Questions.
- To stress the person (moi, je…), see Stressed Pronouns.
- The pronouns that stand with the verb as objects: see Object Pronouns.

## Form: the subject pronouns

| Person | Singular | Plural |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | je / j’ | nous |
| 2 | tu | vous |
| 3 | il / elle | ils / elles |
| 3 | on |  |

- Before a vowel or a silent h, **je** becomes **j’**. J’aime le café. / J’habite à Nice. / **Je** parle. (I like coffee. / I live in Nice. / I speak.)
- **Il** and **elle** stand for one subject; **ils** and **elles** for several. **Elle** travaille. / **Elles** travaillent. (She is working. / They are working.)
- For elisions and liaisons, see Liaison and Elision.

## Use: who each pronoun stands for

| Use | Example |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **je**: the person speaking | **Je** m’appelle Léa. / **Je** suis français. | My name is Léa. / I'm French. |
| **tu**: one person you are on familiar terms with | **Tu** parles anglais ? / **Tu** as faim ? | Do you speak English? / Are you hungry? |
| **vous**: one person you address politely, or several people | **Vous** habitez à Paris ? / **Vous** avez faim, les enfants ? | Do you live in Paris? / Are you hungry, children? |
| **il** and **elle**: a man, a woman | Marc est là. **Il** travaille. / Léa est là. **Elle** travaille. | Marc is here. He's working. / Léa is here. She's working. |
| **nous**: the speaker and others | **Nous** habitons à Lyon. / **Nous** sommes amis. | We live in Lyon. / We're friends. |
| **ils** and **elles**: several people | Paul et Marc sont là. **Ils** travaillent. / Léa et Anna sont là. **Elles** travaillent. | Paul and Marc are here. They're working. / Léa and Anna are here. They're working. |
| **il** and **elle**: a thing or an animal | Où est le livre ? ‖ **Il** est sur la table. / Où est la clé ? ‖ **Elle** est là. | Where is the book? ‖ It is on the table. / Where is the key? ‖ It is here. |
| **ils**: a group of men or a mixed group | Léa et Paul sont là. **Ils** travaillent. / Anna, Léa et Paul sont là. **Ils** travaillent. | Léa and Paul are here. They're working. / Anna, Léa and Paul are here. They're working. |
| **on**: “we” in speech, with the **il** form | **On** mange ensemble ? / **On** est amis. | Shall we eat together? / We're friends. |
| **il** with no person behind it: the weather | **Il** pleut. / **Il** neige. | It's raining. / It's snowing. |
| **on**: people in general | En France, **on** parle français. / **On** mange bien ici. | In France, people speak French. / The food is good here. |

- **Il** and **elle** follow the gender of the noun, even for a thing. Le téléphone ? **Il** est neuf. / La voiture ? **Elle** est neuve. (The phone? It is new. / The car? It is new.)
- The gender of nouns: see Noun Gender.
- A single man in the group is enough for **ils**; **elles** stands for women only. Anna, Léa et Paul sont là : **ils** travaillent. / Anna et Léa sont là : **elles** travaillent. (Anna, Léa and Paul are here: they're working. / Anna and Léa are here: they're working.)
- **On** takes the verb in the **il** form. **On** parle français. / **On** a faim. (We speak French. / We're hungry.)
- To say what someone or something is with c’est and il est: see C’est and Il est.

## Pronunciation: the subject pronouns

| Pronoun | Before a consonant | Before a vowel |
| --- | --- | --- |
| je | **je parle** /ʒə paʁl/ | **j’aime** /ʒɛm/ |
| on | **on parle** /ɔ̃ paʁl/ | **on aime** /ɔ̃ nɛm/ |
| nous | **nous parlons** /nu paʁlɔ̃/ | **nous aimons** /nu zɛmɔ̃/ |
| vous | **vous parlez** /vu paʁle/ | **vous aimez** /vu zɛme/ |
| ils | **ils parlent** /il paʁl/ | **ils aiment** /il zɛm/ |
| elles | **elles parlent** /ɛl paʁl/ | **elles aiment** /ɛl zɛm/ |

- Before a vowel, **on** links with /n/, and **nous**, **vous**, **ils** and **elles** with /z/. **On** a faim. / **Nous** avons faim. / **Ils** ont faim. (We're hungry. / We're hungry. / They're hungry.)
- **Il** and **ils** both sound /il/; the liaison in /z/ or the verb form tells them apart. **Il a** faim /il a/. · **Ils ont** faim /il zɔ̃/. · **Ils sont** là /il sɔ̃/. (He is hungry. / They are hungry. / They are here.)
- All liaisons and elisions: see Liaison and Elision.

## Typical errors

| ✗ | ✓ |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Je habite à Lyon. | J’habite à Lyon. | **je** becomes **j’** before a vowel or a silent h |
| Où est la clé ? Il est sur la table. | Où est la clé ? **Elle** est sur la table. | **la clé** is feminine: **elle**; **le livre** is masculine: **il** |
| Léa et Paul sont là. Elles travaillent. | Léa et Paul sont là. **Ils** travaillent. | a mixed group is **ils** |
| On parlons français. | On **parle** français. | **on** takes the **il** form |