The pronoun en

Some, any, of it, of them

Chapter 3 Grammar

The pronoun en

The pronoun en often translates into

some, any, of it or of them

En can replace a form of de + noun

EXAMPLES:

– Tu veux du yaourt?

Would you like some yogurt?

– Non, merci je n’en veux pas.

Not thanks I don’t want any

The pronoun en

En can also replace nouns that follow un, une,

number or expressions of quantity.

– In this case, you normally still use the un , une, number

or quantity expression (ie beaucoup) with En in the

sentence.

Examples:

– Tu manges beaucoup de sandwichs?

Do you eat a lot of sandwiches?

– Oui j’en mange beaucoup.

Yes I eat a lot of them.

– J’en mange un à midi

I often eat one of them at noon.

The pronoun en

When there are two verbs in a sentence,

place en before the infinitive (second verb)

– Similar to the pronoun y and direct/indirect

object pronouns

– When one verb before the conjugated verb,

when two verbs before the infinitive

Example:

– Des crevettes? Je vais en acheter.

Shrimp? I’m going to buy some.

CLASS WORK

Write the noun that you would replace

using en. Then rewrite the sentence using

the pronoun en.

– Nous prenons des fraises.

– Elle mange trois sandwichs.

– Ils ne mangent pas de framboises.

– Il y a beaucoup de tomates.

– Je vais manger de la tarte.

Order of PronounsWe have learned several different pronouns in French.– Direct object pronouns – me, te, le, la, nous, vous, les

– Indirect object pronouns – me, te, lui, nous, vous, leur

– Y = there (locations)

– En = some, any, of it, of them

These pronouns can sometimes be used in the same sentence with direct and indirect objects. Follow this order in those cases:

Me le

te l’ lui y en

nous la leur

vous les

ORDER OF PRONOUNS

EXAMPLES

– Tu peux donner des fraises à moi?

Oui je peux t’en donner.

– Vous achetez les baguettes à la boulangerie?

Oui je les y achète.

– Tu vas donner des yaourts à Paul?

Oui je vais lui en donner.