Download Indirect Object Pronouns

Indirect Object Pronouns
how to say “to me”, “to you” etc in
French
What IS an Indirect Object?

An Indirect Object shows who or what is indirectly
affected by the verb’s action. It answers the question “to
whom/what?” or “for whom/what?”
 For example: She gives the man the book.
 Who gives? - she - subject.
 Gives what? - book - direct object.
 To whom? - man - indirect object.

In French, an Indirect Object noun is preceded by the
preposition à, corresponding to the English to. The
pronoun, however, includes the à.
OK, so what ARE the Indirect Object
Pronouns ?

The Indirect Object Pronouns (INDOPs)
are only different from Direct Object
Pronouns (DOPs) in the 3rd person.
singular
plural
1
me
nous
2
te
vous
3
lui
leur
How about position?



INDOPs, just like DOPs, precede the conjugated
verb in a simple clause.
Elle lui donne le livre.
In a compound tense, they precede the auxiliary
verb. NB No agreement with an INDOP.
Elle lui a donné le livre.
In an infinitive construction, they precede the
infinitive.
Elle va lui donner le livre.
Use

Verbs used more often with indirect objects are : donner:
to give, parler: to speak, dire: to tell/say.
Je lui donne le livre.
I give him/her the book.
Il nous a parlé.
He spoke to us.
Elle lui a dit bonjour.
She said hello to him.
Note that an indirect object noun is preceded by à.
 Sometimes a verb may require an indirect object in
French, whereas in English it is direct. Such verbs will
require the preposition à before the noun.
Il obéit à ses parents. > Il leur obéit.
He obeys his parents. > He obeys them.
Exemple...

J’ai donné un CD de
MC Solaar à mon
copain.

Je lui ai donné un CD
de MC Solaar.
Exemple 2...

J’ai montré cette
photo d’une église à
Malte à mes
étudiants.

Je leur ai montré
cette photo....
Exemple 3...

J’ai dit bonjour à
Sam.

Je lui ai dit bonjour.
Change underlined noun to
pronoun...






J’ai téléphoné à maman.
Nous avons donné un
livre à papa.
Ils parlent aux profs.
Tu écris à Anne?
Elle donne des biscuits à
ses copains.
J’ai acheté un cadeau à
ma soeur.






Je lui ai téléphoné.
Nous lui avons donné un
livre.
Ils leur parlent.
Tu lui écris?
Elle leur donne des
biscuits.
Je lui ai acheté un
cadeau.