Why is "Putting the object pronoun after the verb, in English word order (writing *je vois le*)" a common mistake in Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object?

Why it happens: English says 'I see him', so learners copy that order into French. How to avoid it: Remember the pronoun goes BEFORE the verb: *je **le** vois*. Read it to yourself as the literal 'I him see' until the new order feels automatic. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), word order

Why is "Confusing direct *le/la* with indirect *lui* (writing *je le parle* for 'I speak to him')" a common mistake in Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object?

Why it happens: Beginners pick a pronoun by gender alone and don't check whether the verb takes *à*. How to avoid it: Run the 'to/for' test first. If the noun had *à* in front (*parler à*), use *lui/leur*; if not, use *le/la/les*. So 'I speak to him' is *je **lui** parle*, not *je le parle*. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), accuracy

Why is "Using *tu* with the examiner or a stranger" a common mistake in Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object?

Why it happens: English has only one 'you', so the *tu/vous* distinction is easy to forget under pressure. How to avoid it: Default to *vous* for anyone you don't know well and for any group. In the Speaking exam, address the examiner as *vous* from start to finish. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 3 (Speaking), register

Why is "Using *elles* for a mixed group of people" a common mistake in Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object?

Why it happens: Learners match the pronoun to the females they can see and overlook the rule for mixed groups. How to avoid it: Use *elles* only when the group is entirely female. As soon as one male is included, the group becomes *ils* — even ninety-nine women plus one man are *ils*. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)

Why is "Forgetting to elide before a vowel (writing *je le aime* instead of *je l'aime*)" a common mistake in Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object?

Why it happens: English does not contract words this way, so the apostrophe rule is easy to drop. How to avoid it: Before a verb starting with a vowel or silent h, change *me, te, le, la* to *m', t', l'*: *je **l'**aime*, *il **m'**écoute*. Note *les, lui, leur, nous, vous* never elide. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), spelling

Why is "Treating à-verbs as direct (writing *je la téléphone* for 'I phone her')" a common mistake in Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object?

Why it happens: The English verb 'phone' looks like it hits the object directly, so learners reach for *la*. How to avoid it: Learn the common à-verbs (téléphoner à, parler à, donner à, dire à, répondre à, demander à) as taking *lui/leur*. 'I phone her' is *je **lui** téléphone*. Source: Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 2 & 4

Cambridge IGCSE French (0520)

Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object

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Detailed Study Notes

Detailed notes on Core Grammar for Cambridge IGCSE French, covering key concepts, explanations, examples, and exam-focused revision points.

French pronouns — subject and direct/indirect object — Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 (2025-2027)

A complete beginner's guide to the little words that replace nouns in French: who is doing the action (subject pronouns) and who is on the receiving end (direct and indirect object pronouns). Master where they go and you instantly sound more natural and avoid repeating yourself in every paper.

At a glance

A pronoun is a small word that replaces a noun so you don't repeat it: instead of Marie aime Marie you say elle s'aime (she loves herself).
Subject pronouns say who does the action and sit before the verb: je (I), tu (you), il/elle (he/she), nous (we), vous (you), ils/elles (they).
French has two words for 'you': tu (one person you know well) and vous (polite, or more than one person). Choosing wrong can seem rude in the Speaking exam.
A direct object is hit directly by the verb (I see the dog); the direct object pronouns are me, te, le, la, nous, vous, les.
An indirect object has a to/for in front of it (I speak to Marie); the indirect object pronouns are me, te, lui, nous, vous, leur.
The huge difference from English: object pronouns go BEFORE the verb, not after. Je le vois = literally I him see = I see him.
le/la/les (it/them, no 'to') vs lui/leur (to him-her/to them) is the single most important contrast to get right.
il(s)/elle(s) doubles up as both 'he/she/they' and 'it/they' for objects — French has no separate word for the lifeless 'it'.

What you’ll learn

Mapped to the Cambridge IGCSE 0520 syllabus (2025-2027).

List the French subject pronouns and use them correctly before a verb.
Choose between tu and vous according to who you are speaking to.
Define direct and indirect objects and tell them apart in a sentence.
Replace a direct-object noun with le, la, les (and me, te, nous, vous).
Replace an indirect-object noun (one introduced by à) with lui or leur.
Place object pronouns correctly before the verb in statements, negatives and the near future.
Recognise and produce these pronouns in connected speech and writing across all four papers.

What a pronoun is — and why French needs them

A pronoun replaces a noun so you can avoid repeating it. French has three families we care about here.

A pronoun is a small word that stands in for a noun you have already mentioned, so you do not have to keep repeating it. English does this constantly: "Marie likes coffee, so she drinks it every morning." Here she replaces Marie and it replaces coffee.

French works the same way, but the rules about which word to use and where to put it are different — and that is exactly what earns or loses marks. In this note we meet three families:

Family	Job	English example	French example
Subject pronoun	does the action	I speak	je parle
Direct object pronoun	is hit directly by the verb	I see him	je le vois
Indirect object pronoun	the to / for person	I speak to him	je lui parle

The golden rule to remember from the very start: in French, the object pronoun usually comes before the verb, the opposite of English word order. Je le vois translates word-for-word as I him see, but means I see him. Get comfortable with that "backwards" feel now and the rest is just vocabulary.

Worked mini-example. Take Paul regarde la télévision (Paul watches the television). To avoid repeating la télévision, replace it with the direct object pronoun la (it, feminine) and move it in front of the verb: Paul la regarde (Paul watches it).

A pronoun replaces a noun to avoid repetition.
Three families here: subject (does the action), direct object (hit by the verb), indirect object (the to/for person).
Object pronouns go before the verb in French — the opposite of English.
Je le vois = literally 'I him see' = I see him.

Subject pronouns — who does the action

je, tu, il/elle, nous, vous, ils/elles sit before the verb and decide its ending.

Subject pronouns tell you who is doing the action. They sit directly in front of the verb and they control the verb's ending (its conjugation). Here is the full set:

French	English	Notes
je (j')	I	Becomes j' before a vowel: j'aime (I like)
tu	you	One person you know well — informal singular
il	he / it	Also "it" for a masculine noun
elle	she / it	Also "it" for a feminine noun
on	we / one / people	Very common spoken "we"; takes the il form
nous	we	More formal/written "we"
vous	you	Polite singular or plural (more than one person)
ils	they (m.)	All-male group, or any mixed group
elles	they (f.)	All-female group only

Two things surprise English speakers.

1. French has no separate word for the lifeless "it". A masculine noun is il, a feminine noun is elle. Le livre est ici (the book is here) → Il est ici (It is here), because livre is masculine.

2. ils wins in a mixed group. Even ninety-nine women and one man together are ils (they). Use elles only when the group is entirely female.

The on shortcut. In everyday speech the French very often say on instead of nous for "we": On va au cinéma (We're going to the cinema). It uses the same verb form as il/elle: on va not on vont.

Worked mini-example. Choose the pronoun for "Marie and her sisters arrive." The group is entirely female, so use elles: Elles arrivent. (They arrive.) Now add their brother: the group is mixed, so it flips to ils: Ils arrivent.

Set: je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils, elles.
je → j' before a vowel (j'aime).
No separate word for 'it': masculine noun = il, feminine = elle.
Mixed group = ils; elles only when everyone is female.
Spoken 'we' is usually on (+ il/elle verb form).

tu or vous? — the two words for 'you'

tu is for one familiar person; vous is polite or plural. Getting it right matters in Speaking.

English has just one word, you. French splits it into two, and choosing correctly is a real social signal that examiners notice in the Speaking test.

Use tu when...	Use vous when...
Speaking to one person	Speaking to two or more people
You know them well (friend, family)	Being polite to one person you don't know
Talking to a child or a pet	Addressing a teacher, examiner, shopkeeper, adult stranger

So vous does two jobs: it is the polite singular ("you", to a stranger) and the plural ("you all", to any group).

Examples.

To your friend: Tu vas bien ? (Are you OK? — informal)
To the examiner: Vous allez bien ? (Are you well? — polite)
To a group of friends: Vous venez ? (Are you (all) coming?)

Rule of thumb for the exam: address the examiner as vous throughout your Speaking test. It is always safe and always polite.

Worked mini-example. You want to ask your new teacher their name. Because they are an adult you don't know, use vous: Comment vous appelez-vous ? (What is your name?) To your best friend you would instead say Comment tu t'appelles ?

tu = one person you know well (or a child).
vous = polite to one stranger, OR two-plus people.
vous covers both 'polite you' and 'plural you'.
In the Speaking exam, always address the examiner as vous.

Direct vs indirect objects — the to/for test

A direct object is hit straight by the verb; an indirect object has a 'to' or 'for' in front of it.

Decision tree: if a noun has "to/for" (à) in front of it, use an indirect pronoun; otherwise use a direct one.

Before you can pick the right pronoun, you must decide whether the noun is a direct or indirect object. Here is the simple test.

Direct object — the verb hits it straight on, with no little word in between.

Je vois le chien. (I see the dog.) → le chien is direct.
Elle mange la pomme. (She eats the apple.) → la pomme is direct.

Indirect object — there is a to or for (in French, à) in front of it.

Je parle à Marie. (I speak to Marie.) → à Marie is indirect.
Il donne le livre à son ami. (He gives the book to his friend.) → à son ami is indirect.

The quick test: can you slip a "to" or "for" in front of the noun in English? If yes (I speak to him), it's indirect. If no (I see him — never "I see to him"), it's direct.

Watch out — some French verbs are "indirect" even when English looks direct. The verb téléphoner takes à: you say téléphoner à quelqu'un (literally "telephone to somebody"). So "I phone her" is je lui téléphone, with an indirect pronoun. The most common of these are parler à (speak to), téléphoner à (phone), donner à (give to), dire à (say to), répondre à (answer), demander à (ask).

Worked mini-example. Is à ses parents direct or indirect in Elle écrit à ses parents (She writes to her parents)? There is an à, so it is indirect — and because "parents" is plural (several people), the pronoun will be leur: Elle leur écrit (She writes to them).

Direct object = verb hits it with no linking word: je vois le chien.
Indirect object = has à (to/for) in front: je parle à Marie.
Quick test: can you put 'to/for' before the English noun? Yes → indirect.
Some verbs take à even when English looks direct: téléphoner à, répondre à.

The object pronouns and where they go

le/la/les are direct; lui/leur are indirect; me/te/nous/vous do both. All sit before the verb.

Now the heart of the topic. Here are both sets side by side. Notice that the outer people (me, you, us) share the same word for direct and indirect — only the third person (him/her/them) splits.

Person	Direct (no 'to')	Indirect (with 'to/for')
me	me / m'	me / m'
you (tu)	te / t'	te / t'
him / it (m.)	le / l'	lui
her / it (f.)	la / l'	lui
us	nous	nous
you (vous)	vous	vous
them	les	leur

Two big things to lock in:

1. lui and leur do not show gender. lui = "to him" or "to her"; leur = "to them" (any gender). The direct le/la still show gender, but the indirect lui never does.

2. Position: before the verb. In a simple sentence the object pronoun sits immediately before the conjugated verb.

English	French (literal)	French
I see him	I him see	Je le vois
I see her	I her see	Je la vois
I see them	I them see	Je les vois
I speak to him/her	I to-him speak	Je lui parle
I speak to them	I to-them speak	Je leur parle
She loves me	She me loves	Elle m'aime

Elision before a vowel. me, te, le, la drop their vowel before a verb starting with a vowel or silent h: *je **l'*aime (I love him/her/it), *il **m'*écoute (he listens to me). les, lui, leur, nous, vous never elide.

In the negative, the pronoun stays glued to the verb; ne ... pas wraps around the pronoun + verb together: Je ne le vois pas (I don't see him).

In the near future (aller + infinitive), the pronoun goes in front of the infinitive, the verb it belongs to: Je vais le voir (I'm going to see him); Je vais lui parler (I'm going to speak to him).

Worked mini-example. Replace the nouns in Je donne le cadeau à mes amis (I give the present to my friends). le cadeau is the direct object → le; à mes amis is indirect and plural → leur. With one pronoun at a time: Je le donne à mes amis (I give it to my friends) and Je leur donne le cadeau (I give them the present).

Direct: me, te, le, la, nous, vous, les. Indirect: me, te, lui, nous, vous, leur.
lui/leur show no gender; le/la still do.
Pronoun goes before the conjugated verb: je le vois.
me, te, le, la → m', t', l' before a vowel (je l'aime).
Negative wraps ne...pas around pronoun+verb: je ne le vois pas.
Near future: pronoun before the infinitive: je vais le voir.

Quick recap

Subject pronouns (je, tu, il, elle, on, nous, vous, ils, elles) say who acts and sit before the verb; j' before a vowel.
French has no separate 'it' — masculine noun = il, feminine = elle; a mixed group is ils.
tu = one familiar person; vous = polite singular or any plural; address the examiner as vous.
Direct object = verb hits it directly (je vois le chien); indirect object = has à in front (je parle à Marie).
Direct pronouns: me, te, le, la, nous, vous, les. Indirect pronouns: me, te, lui, nous, vous, leur.
le/la/les show gender/number; lui (to him/her) and leur (to them) do not.
Object pronouns go BEFORE the verb (je le vois), wrap inside negatives (je ne le vois pas), and sit before the infinitive in the near future (je vais le voir).

Memorise this

Verbatim phrases and definitions Cambridge mark schemes credit.

Subject: je / j' (I), tu (you, informal), il/elle (he/she/it), on (we, spoken), nous (we), vous (you, polite/plural), ils/elles (they).
Direct object: me, te, le, la, nous, vous, les — je le vois (I see him/it).
Indirect object: me, te, lui, nous, vous, leur — je lui parle (I speak to him/her).
lui = to him OR to her; leur = to them (no gender).
Elision: me, te, le, la → m', t', l' before a vowel — *je **l'*aime (I love him/her).
Position: pronoun before the verb — je le vois; negative je ne le vois pas; future je vais le voir.
à-verbs take an indirect pronoun: parler à, téléphoner à, donner à, dire à, répondre à, demander à → je lui téléphone (I phone him/her).

How it’s examined

Pronouns appear in every paper of Cambridge IGCSE French 0520.

Paper 1 (Listening): You must track who is doing what to whom. A single lui or leur tells you the action is aimed at a person; mishearing le (him/it) as les (them) changes the number. Pronoun before the verb is also a clue to sentence meaning.
Paper 2 (Reading): Texts use object pronouns to avoid repeating nouns, so you must trace each one back to the noun it replaces. Questions often hinge on identifying who le, la, lui or leur refers to earlier in the passage.
Paper 3 (Speaking): The tu/vous choice is judged directly — address the examiner with vous. Using object pronouns (je le sais, je lui ai parlé) instead of repeating nouns lifts your fluency and accuracy marks.
Paper 4 (Writing): Correct pronoun choice and position before the verb are accuracy points. Writing je vois le or putting the pronoun after the verb (English order) is penalised. The le/la vs lui/leur distinction and the elision l' are common accuracy checks.

Examiner reports note that candidates often (1) place the object pronoun after the verb in English word order, (2) confuse direct le/la with indirect lui, and (3) use tu with the examiner. All three are easy marks once the rules above are secure.

Sources: Cambridge IGCSE French 0520 Syllabus 2025-2027; Cambridge 0520 Paper 2 (Reading) & Paper 4 (Writing) Specimen 2025-2027; Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports 2022-2024. Last reviewed 2026-06-02.

Take this whole topic with you

Step-by-step worked examples — Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object

Step-by-step solutions to past-paper-style questions on pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object, written exactly the way a tutor would explain them at the board.

1Choose the right subject pronoun
Getting started
Question
Replace the underlined people with one subject pronoun. (a) Paul et moi mangeons. (b) Marie et Sophie arrivent. (c) Le livre est sur la table.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  (a) 'Paul and I' includes me, so the group is 'we' → nous: Nous mangeons (We eat).
2. Step 2
  (b) 'Marie and Sophie' are both female and there are several of them → elles: Elles arrivent (They arrive).
3. Step 3
  (c) 'The book' is a thing, not a person. French has no separate 'it' — livre is masculine, so use il: Il est sur la table (It is on the table).
Answer
(a) Nous mangeons. (b) Elles arrivent. (c) Il est sur la table.
Examiner tip
Two classic traps appear here: an all-female group is elles (use ils only when a male is included), and a lifeless 'it' takes il or elle to match the noun's gender — there is no neutral word for 'it' in French.
2Decide between tu and vous
Getting started
Question
Choose tu or vous: (a) asking your best friend if she's coming; (b) asking your examiner how they are; (c) asking a group of classmates if they're ready.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  (a) Best friend = one person you know well → tu: Tu viens ? (Are you coming?)
2. Step 2
  (b) Examiner = one adult you don't know → polite vous: Vous allez bien ? (Are you well?)
3. Step 3
  (c) A group = more than one person → vous (plural): Vous êtes prêts ? (Are you ready?)
Answer
(a) tu — Tu viens ? (b) vous — Vous allez bien ? (c) vous — Vous êtes prêts ?
Examiner tip
vous does two jobs — polite singular and plain plural. In the Speaking test, always address the examiner as vous; slipping into tu with the examiner is flagged in examiner reports as inappropriate register.
3Direct or indirect? Apply the 'to/for' test
Building confidence
Question
For each sentence, say whether the bold noun is a direct or indirect object, then give the pronoun. (a) Je regarde la télévision. (b) Elle parle à son père. (c) Nous téléphonons à nos amis.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  (a) No 'to/for' before la télévision → direct. It is feminine singular → la: Je la regarde (I watch it).
2. Step 2
  (b) à son père has à → indirect. One person → lui: Elle lui parle (She speaks to him).
3. Step 3
  (c) téléphoner takes à even though English 'phone' looks direct → indirect. 'Our friends' is several people → leur: Nous leur téléphonons (We phone them).
Answer
(a) direct → Je la regarde. (b) indirect → Elle lui parle. (c) indirect → Nous leur téléphonons.
Examiner tip
Part (c) is the high-value trap: téléphoner à, parler à, répondre à are indirect in French even when the English verb feels direct. Use lui/leur with these verbs, never le/la/les.
4Replace the noun and place the pronoun correctly
Building confidence
Question
Rewrite using a pronoun for the bold part: (a) Je vois Marie. (b) Il donne le cadeau à ses parents. (c) negative: Je ne vois pas le chien.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  (a) Marie is a direct object, feminine → la, placed before the verb: Je la vois (I see her).
2. Step 2
  (b) à ses parents is indirect and plural → leur, before the verb: Il leur donne le cadeau (He gives them the present).
3. Step 3
  (c) le chien is direct, masculine → le. In a negative, ne ... pas wraps around the pronoun + verb: Je ne le vois pas (I don't see it).
Answer
(a) Je la vois. (b) Il leur donne le cadeau. (c) Je ne le vois pas.
Examiner tip
Position before the verb is the accuracy point examiners look for. In the negative, the pronoun stays glued to the verb inside ne ... pas — je ne le vois pas, never je ne vois pas le.
5Pronouns in the near future and before a vowel
Stretch
Question
Rewrite with a pronoun: (a) Je vais voir mon frère. (b) Elle aime le chocolat. (c) Je vais parler à la directrice.
Step-by-step solution
1. Step 1
  (a) mon frère is direct, masculine → le. In the near future (aller + infinitive) the pronoun sits before the infinitive: Je vais le voir (I'm going to see him).
2. Step 2
  (b) le chocolat is direct, masculine → le. But aime starts with a vowel, so le elides to l': *Elle **l'*aime (She loves it).
3. Step 3
  (c) à la directrice has à → indirect, one person → lui (no gender shown). In the future it goes before the infinitive: Je vais lui parler (I'm going to speak to her).
Answer
(a) Je vais le voir. (b) *Elle **l'*aime. (c) Je vais lui parler.
Examiner tip
Two precise moves are rewarded: in the near future the pronoun attaches to the infinitive (je vais le voir, not je le vais voir), and me/te/le/la must elide before a vowel (l'aime). Note lui shows no gender, so 'to her' is still lui.

Model Answers — Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object

High-scoring sample answers for pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object on the Cambridge IGCSE 0520 paper, with examiner-style notes mapping each response to the mark scheme and assessment objectives.

Question 1
Paper 3 (Speaking) style. Greet your examiner politely and ask how they are, then say you are pleased to meet them. Show correct register.
Model answer
Bonjour Madame. Comment allez-vous ? (Hello Madam. How are you?)

Je suis content de vous rencontrer. (I'm pleased to meet you.) — or contente if you are female.
Why this scores
Why this scores. Every form of 'you' is the polite vous (allez-vous, vous rencontrer), which is correct for an examiner. The object pronoun vous sits naturally before the infinitive in vous rencontrer. Choosing tu here would lower the register mark; this answer is safely and consistently polite.
Question 2
Paper 2 (Reading) style. In the text: Léa a vu Thomas hier. Elle lui a donné un livre et elle l'a remercié. Who does lui refer to, and who does l' refer to?
Model answer
lui refers to Thomas — it is the indirect object, 'to him' (she gave a book to him).

l' refers to Thomas as well — it is the direct object 'him' (elle l'a remercié = she thanked him), elided to l' before the vowel of a.
Why this scores
Why this scores. It traces each pronoun back to the noun it replaces — the core Reading skill. It correctly reads lui as indirect (donner à) and l' as the direct object of remercier (which does not take à), and explains the elision le → l' before a.
Question 3
Paper 4 (Writing) style. Improve this repetitive sentence so it sounds natural: J'aime mon professeur. Je parle à mon professeur tous les jours et je respecte mon professeur.
Model answer
J'aime mon professeur. Je lui parle tous les jours et je le respecte. (I like my teacher. I speak to him every day and I respect him.)
Why this scores
Why this scores. It removes the clumsy repetition of mon professeur using two correctly chosen pronouns: indirect lui for parler à (speak to), and direct le for respecter (no à). Both sit before the verb. This control of direct vs indirect pronouns is exactly what lifts the accuracy and range marks in Writing.

Key Definitions and Keywords — Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object

Definitions to memorise and the exact keywords mark schemes credit for pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object answers — sharpened from recent examiner reports for the 2026 0520 sitting.

Subject pronoun (je, tu, il, elle, nous, vous, ils, elles)
Examiner keyword
A pronoun naming who does the action; it sits before the verb and controls its ending. je becomes j' before a vowel.
Example
Je parle (I speak); Nous mangeons (We eat); j'aime (I like).
tu
Examiner keyword
The informal singular 'you', used for one person you know well, a child, or a pet.
Example
Tu viens ? (Are you coming?) — to a friend.
vous
Examiner keyword
The 'you' used either politely to one person you don't know well, or for two or more people (plural).
Example
Vous allez bien ? (Are you well?) — to the examiner or to a group.
Direct object pronoun (me, te, le, la, nous, vous, les)
Examiner keyword
Replaces a noun hit directly by the verb (no 'to/for'). le/la/les show gender and number; me/te/le/la elide before a vowel.
Example
Je le vois (I see him/it); Je les vois (I see them); *Je **l'*aime (I love him/her/it).
Indirect object pronoun (me, te, lui, nous, vous, leur)
Examiner keyword
Replaces a noun introduced by à ('to/for'). lui = to him/her, leur = to them — neither shows gender.
Example
Je lui parle (I speak to him/her); Je leur parle (I speak to them).
le / la / les
Examiner keyword
The direct object pronouns 'him/it', 'her/it', 'them'. le = masculine, la = feminine, les = plural; le/la → l' before a vowel.
Example
Tu la manges (You eat it, e.g. la pomme); *Il **l'*écoute (He listens to it/him).
lui / leur
Examiner keyword
The third-person indirect pronouns. lui = 'to him' or 'to her' (one person); leur = 'to them' (several). They never elide and show no gender.
Example
Elle lui téléphone (She phones him/her); Elle leur téléphone (She phones them).
on
A subject pronoun meaning 'we', 'one' or 'people'. Very common in speech for 'we'; it takes the il/elle verb form.
Example
On va au cinéma (We're going to the cinema); On parle français ici (People speak French here).
Pronoun position (before the verb)
Examiner keyword
Object pronouns come before the conjugated verb; in the negative ne ... pas wraps around them; in the near future they sit before the infinitive.
Example
Je le vois (I see it); Je ne le vois pas (I don't see it); Je vais le voir (I'll see it).
à-verbs (parler à, téléphoner à, donner à)
Verbs that link to their object with à, so they take an indirect pronoun (lui/leur) even when the English looks direct.
Example
téléphoner à → je lui téléphone (I phone him/her); répondre à → je leur réponds (I answer them).

Common Mistakes and Misconceptions — Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object

The traps other students keep falling into on pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object questions — taken from recent Cambridge IGCSE 0520 examiner reports and mark schemes — and how to avoid them.

✕Putting the object pronoun after the verb, in English word order (writing je vois le)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), word order
Why it happens
English says 'I see him', so learners copy that order into French.
How to avoid it
Remember the pronoun goes BEFORE the verb: je le vois. Read it to yourself as the literal 'I him see' until the new order feels automatic.
✕Confusing direct le/la with indirect lui (writing je le parle for 'I speak to him')
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), accuracy
Why it happens
Beginners pick a pronoun by gender alone and don't check whether the verb takes à.
How to avoid it
Run the 'to/for' test first. If the noun had à in front (parler à), use lui/leur; if not, use le/la/les. So 'I speak to him' is je lui parle, not je le parle.
✕Using tu with the examiner or a stranger
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 3 (Speaking), register
Why it happens
English has only one 'you', so the tu/vous distinction is easy to forget under pressure.
How to avoid it
Default to vous for anyone you don't know well and for any group. In the Speaking exam, address the examiner as vous from start to finish.
✕Using elles for a mixed group of people
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing)
Why it happens
Learners match the pronoun to the females they can see and overlook the rule for mixed groups.
How to avoid it
Use elles only when the group is entirely female. As soon as one male is included, the group becomes ils — even ninety-nine women plus one man are ils.
✕Forgetting to elide before a vowel (writing je le aime instead of je l'aime)
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Paper 4 (Writing), spelling
Why it happens
English does not contract words this way, so the apostrophe rule is easy to drop.
How to avoid it
Before a verb starting with a vowel or silent h, change me, te, le, la to m', t', l': *je **l'*aime, *il **m'*écoute. Note les, lui, leur, nous, vous never elide.
✕Treating à-verbs as direct (writing je la téléphone for 'I phone her')
Cambridge 0520 Examiner Reports — Papers 2 & 4
Why it happens
The English verb 'phone' looks like it hits the object directly, so learners reach for la.
How to avoid it
Learn the common à-verbs (téléphoner à, parler à, donner à, dire à, répondre à, demander à) as taking lui/leur. 'I phone her' is je lui téléphone.

Pronouns - subject and direct/indirect object

Detailed Study Notes

At a glance

What you’ll learn

Quick recap

Memorise this

How it’s examined

Take this whole topic with you

1Choose the right subject pronoun

2Decide between tu and vous

3Direct or indirect? Apply the 'to/for' test

4Replace the noun and place the pronoun correctly

5Pronouns in the near future and before a vowel

Subject pronoun (je, tu, il, elle, nous, vous, ils, elles)

tu

vous

Direct object pronoun (me, te, le, la, nous, vous, les)

Indirect object pronoun (me, te, lui, nous, vous, leur)

le / la / les

lui / leur

on

Pronoun position (before the verb)

à-verbs (parler à, téléphoner à, donner à)

✕Putting the object pronoun after the verb, in English word order (writing je vois le)

✕Confusing direct le/la with indirect lui (writing je le parle for 'I speak to him')

✕Using tu with the examiner or a stranger

✕Using elles for a mixed group of people

✕Forgetting to elide before a vowel (writing je le aime instead of je l'aime)

✕Treating à-verbs as direct (writing je la téléphone for 'I phone her')