← All grammar
Pronouns

Subject pronouns: je, tu, il, elle...

Beginner

French subject pronouns are je (I), tu (you, informal singular), il/elle/on (he/she/one), nous (we), vous (you, formal or plural), and ils/elles (they, masculine/feminine or mixed plural). Je shortens to j' before a vowel sound: j'aime, j'habite.

On deserves special attention: grammatically it's third-person singular (on prend takes the same verb form as il prend), but in everyday spoken French it's used constantly to mean "we" instead of nouson va au cinéma is far more common in conversation than nous allons au cinéma, even though both mean "we're going to the movies."