Grammar / A2 : Elementary / Direct object pronouns
Direct object pronouns
le, la, l', les: replacing the direct object.
The pronouns that go before the verb
Every time you say "him", "her", "it", "them", "me", or "you" as the direct object of a verb (the noun that receives the action), you are using a COD pronoun (complément d'objet direct). French COD pronouns work on a different principle from English: in English, these pronouns come after the verb ("I see him"). In French, they go before it: Je le vois.
This position rule: pronoun before the verb, is consistent across simple sentences, negative sentences, and compound tenses. The one exception is the positive imperative, where the pronoun moves after the verb and was covered in the imperative lesson.
1. The COD pronouns
| Pronoun | Before vowel / silent h | Replaces | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| me | m' | me (1st sg.) | Il me regarde. (He is looking at me.) |
| te | t' | you (2nd sg.) | Je te vois. (I see you.) |
| le | l' | him / it (masc. sg.) | Je le connais. (I know him / it.) |
| la | l' | her / it (fem. sg.) | Tu la vois ? (Do you see her / it?) |
| nous | nous | us | Elle nous invite. (She is inviting us.) |
| vous | vous | you (pl. or formal sg.) | Je vous comprends. (I understand you.) |
| les | les | them (m. or f.) | Il les aime. (He loves them.) |
2. Identifying the direct object
The direct object is the noun that receives the action of the verb directly; with no preposition. To find it, ask "who?" or "what?" after the verb.
| Sentence | Question | Direct object | Pronoun |
|---|---|---|---|
| Je regarde le film. | Je regarde quoi ? | le film (masc. sg.) | le |
| Tu aimes cette chanson. | Tu aimes quoi ? | cette chanson (fem. sg.) | la |
| Elle invite ses amis. | Elle invite qui ? | ses amis (pl.) | les |
| Il connaît Marie. | Il connaît qui ? | Marie (fem. sg.) | la |
| Nous attendons le bus. | Nous attendons quoi ? | le bus (masc. sg.) | le |
💡 The pronoun must match the gender and number of the noun it replaces. Always check: is it masculine or feminine? Singular or plural?
le livre → le · la chanson → la · les enfants → les · l'hôtel → l'
3. Position in a simple sentence
The COD pronoun goes directly before the conjugated verb.
| With noun (direct object) | With COD pronoun |
|---|---|
| Je regarde le film. | Je le regarde. |
| Elle aime la musique. | Elle l'aime. |
| Tu connais ces étudiants ? | Tu les connais ? |
| Il appelle sa mère. | Il l'appelle. |
| Vous comprenez cette règle ? | Vous la comprenez ? |
4. Negation
ne goes before the COD pronoun, and pas goes after the conjugated verb.
Structure: ne + COD pronoun + verb + pas
| Affirmative | Negative |
|---|---|
| Je le regarde. | Je ne le regarde pas. (I don't watch it.) |
| Elle l'aime. | Elle ne l'aime pas. (She doesn't love him/it.) |
| Ils les connaissent. | Ils ne les connaissent pas. (They don't know them.) |
| Tu me comprends. | Tu ne me comprends pas. (You don't understand me.) |
5. Compound tenses : position and agreement
In compound tenses like the passé composé, the COD pronoun goes before the auxiliary verb. Crucially, when a COD pronoun precedes the verb in the passé composé with avoir, the past participle agrees with the pronoun in gender and number. This is the one case where the avoir past participle does agree; because the direct object precedes it.
Structure: COD pronoun + auxiliary (avoir) + past participle (with agreement)
| Without pronoun | With COD pronoun | Agreement |
|---|---|---|
| J'ai regardé le film. | Je l'ai regardé. | masc. sg. (no change) |
| J'ai regardé la série. | Je l'ai regardée. | fem. sg. (add -e) |
| Il a vu ses amis. (male friends) | Il les a vus. | masc. pl. (add -s) |
| Il a rencontré ces filles. | Il les a rencontrées. | fem. pl. (add -es) |
| Tu as pris les clés. | Tu les as prises. | fem. pl.: add -es (clés is feminine) |
⚠ The agreement is compulsory in writing even when the added letters are silent. regardé, regardée, regardés, regardées; the first three are all pronounced the same. Only the feminine plural -ées produces an audible difference in some participles (pris / prise, fait / faite).
Tu as vu Marie ? — Oui, je l'ai vue ce matin. (Have you seen Marie? — Yes, I saw her this morning.): vue agrees with la replacing Marie (fem.)
Les livres ? Je les ai commandés hier. (The books? I ordered them yesterday.) (commandés agrees with les replacing les livres (masc. pl.))
Ces deux robes ? Je les ai essayées mais je ne les ai pas achetées. (Those two dresses? I tried them on but I didn't buy them.): both participles agree with les replacing robes (fem. pl.)
6. With infinitives
When the COD pronoun accompanies a verb followed by an infinitive (modal verbs, aller, vouloir, pouvoir, devoir...), the pronoun goes before the infinitive; the verb that actually governs the direct object.
| With noun | With COD pronoun |
|---|---|
| Je veux voir ce film. | Je veux le voir. (I want to see it.) |
| Tu dois apprendre ces mots. | Tu dois les apprendre. (You must learn them.) |
| Elle va appeler sa mère. | Elle va l'appeler. (She is going to call her.) |
| Nous pouvons faire cette tâche. | Nous pouvons la faire. (We can do it.) |
| Il sait conduire une voiture. | - |
💡 The logic: the pronoun replaces the direct object of the infinitive, so it goes before the infinitive. In Je veux voir ce film, "ce film" is the object of voir, not of veux; so the pronoun sits before voir: Je veux le voir.
7. COD vs COI : the essential distinction
A direct object (COD) has no preposition before it. An indirect object (COI) always involves a preposition, most commonly à. This distinction determines which pronoun to use.
| Direct object (COD) | Indirect object (COI) | |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | No preposition: the verb acts on the noun directly | With preposition (usually à): the verb acts on the noun indirectly |
| Test | Je regarde quoi / qui ? | Je parle à qui ? |
| Pronoun | le, la, l', les | lui, leur (covered in the next lesson) |
| Example | Je regarde le film. → Je le regarde. | Je parle à Marc. → Je lui parle. |
Verbs that take a COD (no preposition): aimer, voir, regarder, écouter, connaître, attendre, appeler, inviter, chercher, trouver, comprendre, manger, acheter
Verbs that take a COI (with à): parler à, téléphoner à, écrire à, répondre à, donner à, dire à, demander à
Some verbs take BOTH a COD and a COI: Il donne le livre à Marie. → le livre (COD) / à Marie (COI)
8. Summary of all positions
| Context | Position of COD pronoun | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Simple sentence | Before the conjugated verb | Je le regarde. |
| Negative sentence | ne + pronoun + verb + pas | Je ne le regarde pas. |
| Passé composé | Before the auxiliary + agreement on participle | Je l'ai regardée. |
| With infinitive | Before the infinitive | Je veux le regarder. |
| Positive imperative | After the verb, with hyphen | Regarde-le ! |
| Negative imperative | Before the verb (normal position) | Ne le regarde pas ! |
9. Key points
✓ COD pronouns: me, te, le, la, l', nous, vous, les
✓ The pronoun matches the gender and number of the noun it replaces
✓ Normal position: directly before the conjugated verb
✓ Negation: ne + pronoun + verb + pas
✓ Passé composé: pronoun before the auxiliary (and the past participle AGREES with it)
✓ With infinitive: pronoun goes before the infinitive, not before the modal
✓ COD = no preposition (je le regarde) / COI = with preposition (je lui parle)
✓ Positive imperative: pronoun after verb with hyphen; Regarde-le !