French Direct & Indirect Object Pronouns (COD/COI)

Introduction — Stop Repeating the Same Noun

French speakers don’t repeat the same noun over and over. To the question “Did you see the film?” nobody answers “Yes, I saw the film” — instead they say “Yes, I saw it.” In French, that “it” is the job of the object pronoun.

After learning Imperative and le/la/les, y, en, this lesson digs deep into the full COD/COI system — especially those four things that seem hard at first:

1. COD vs COI — how to spot the difference between le/la/les (direct) and lui/leur (indirect).
2. Placement — where the pronoun sits in regular sentences, negation, passé composé, and modal + infinitive.
3. Imperative — the pronoun comes after the verb in a command (Apporte-la !), and me → moi.
4. Two pronouns together + past participle agreement (Mon amie la leur a donnée).

Two core patterns to remember:

• COD: Subject + verb + object (direct object, no preposition in between).
• COI: Subject + verb + à (au / à la / aux / à l’) + object (connected by ‘à’, usually a person).

From Punjabi: Punjabi already puts the object before the verb. ਮੈਂ ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ਵੇਖਦਾ ਹਾਂ is je le vois word for word (I him see). It is English, “I see him”, that has the odd order, so the position is the easy part for you. The hard part is that ਨੂੰ marks both kinds of object: ਮੈਂ ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ਵੇਖਿਆ (je l’ai vu) and ਮੈਂ ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ਫ਼ੋਨ ਕੀਤਾ (je lui ai téléphoné) both use it, so ਨੂੰ cannot tell you le from lui. Only the French verb can.

By the end of this lesson you can:

• say Je le vois and Je lui parle, and know which verbs take which;
• put the pronoun in the right place: negative, passé composé, after a modal, and in a command;
• use two pronouns together (Je te le donne, Donne-le-moi);
• make the participle agree with a COD that comes first (je les ai prises).

Reading qqn and qqch

Dictionaries and grammar books write qqn and qqch to save space. They are shorthand for two words, and you never write them in a real sentence. Say the full word aloud.

Shorthand	Full word	Means	Stands for
qqn	quelqu’un	someone, somebody	a person
qqch (also qch)	quelque chose	something	a thing

So aimer qqn means “to love someone” and regarder qqch means “to look at something”. The shorthand also tells you which pronoun to use, which is why this lesson uses it:

• qqn (a person) after the verb with no à → le / la / les: aimer qqn → Je **l’**aime.
• à qqn (to a person) → lui / leur: parler à qqn → Je lui parle.
• qqch (a thing) with no à → le / la / les: voir qqch → Je le vois.
• à qqch (to a thing) → y, not lui: répondre à qqch → J’y réponds. See y and en.
• donner qqch à qqn has both, so it takes two pronouns: Je le lui donne.

The words behind the shorthand, and their close relatives:

Word	Means	Example
quelqu’un	someone	Quelqu’un m’attend. (Someone is waiting for me.)
quelque chose	something	Tu veux quelque chose ? (Do you want something?)
quelque part	somewhere	Je l’ai laissé quelque part. (I left it somewhere.)
quelques + noun	a few	J’ai quelques amis ici. (I have a few friends here.)
quelques-uns / quelques-unes	a few of them	J’en ai vu quelques-uns. (I saw a few of them.)
personne (ne … personne)	nobody, no one	Je ne vois personne. (I don’t see anyone.)
rien (ne … rien)	nothing	Je ne vois rien. (I don’t see anything.)

Two small rules. Quelqu’un and quelque chose are masculine singular, and an adjective after them takes de: quelqu’un de gentil (someone kind), quelque chose de bon (something good). Personne and rien are the negative opposites of quelqu’un and quelque chose.

1 COD — Direct Object Pronouns

COD is the noun that the verb acts on directly, with no preposition: regarder qqch, voir qqch, aimer qqn, apporter qqch. The test question: what does the verb act on? “What / whom?” (quoi / qui ?).

Pronoun	Replaces	Example
me / m’	me	Tu me vois ? (Do you see me?)
te / t’	you (informal)	Je te comprends. (I understand you.)
le / l’	him / it (masc.)	Je le vois. (I see him/it.)
la / l’	her / it (fem.)	Je la regarde. (I watch her/it.)
nous	us	Vous nous écoutez ? (Are you listening to us?)
vous	you (formal/plural)	Je vous entends. (I hear you.)
les	them	Je les aime. (I like them.)

• “Nous apportons ces cadeaux.” → “Nous les apportons.” (We bring them.)
• “Paul va aimer la pizza.” → “Paul va **l’**aimer.” (Paul is going to like it.)

Attention! Elision: Before a vowel or silent ‘h’, me/te/le/la become m’/t’/l’/l’ — “Je **l’**aime.”, “Il va **m’**aider.”

2 COI — Indirect Object Pronouns (with ‘à’)

COI is the person the verb reaches through ‘à’: parler à, téléphoner à, donner qqch à, écrire à, répondre à. The test question: whom does the verb reach? “To whom?” (à qui ?).

Pronoun	Replaces	Example
me / m’	to me	Tu me parles ? (Are you talking to me?)
te / t’	to you (informal)	Je te réponds. (I answer you.)
lui	to him / to her	Je lui téléphone. (I phone him/her.)
nous	to us	Elle nous écrit. (She writes to us.)
vous	to you (formal/plural)	Je vous explique. (I explain to you.)
leur	to them	Je leur donne l’adresse. (I give them the address.)

• “Il téléphone à Clara.” → “Il lui téléphone.” (He phones her.)
• “Tu parles aux enfants.” → “Tu leur parles.” (You talk to them.)
• “Mon amie a donné un chapeau à son frère.” → “Mon amie lui a donné un chapeau.” (She gave him a hat.)

Attention! me/te/nous/vous are the same in both (COD and COI) — only third person shows a difference: le/la/les (COD) vs lui/leur (COI).

3 COD vs COI — How to Tell Them Apart

The biggest mistake happens here, because English hides the ‘to’: “phone her”, “answer them” — the ‘to’ is invisible in English. Test the French verb, not English:

Is there an ‘à’ after the verb?	Type	Pronoun
No (regarder qqn, voir qqch)	COD	le / la / les
Yes (parler à, téléphoner à)	COI	lui / leur

• regarder, voir, aimer, connaître, apporter, prendre → COD (le/la/les)
• parler à, téléphoner à, répondre à, écrire à, donner à, offrir à → COI (lui/leur)

These verbs need special attention, because English is deceiving: téléphoner à (phone), répondre à (answer), plaire à (please) — all COI, even though English shows no ‘to’.

4 Verbs That Fool You

English puts to, for and at in different places from French, so the English sentence is a poor guide. Check the French verb:

In English	French verb	Type	Pronoun
listen to her	écouter qqn	COD	Je **l’**écoute.
wait for them	attendre qqn	COD	Je les attends.
look for it	chercher qqch	COD	Je la cherche.
look at him	regarder qqn	COD	Je le regarde.
help her	aider qqn	COD	Je **l’**aide.
ask him	demander à qqn	COI	Je lui demande.
answer them	répondre à qqn	COI	Je leur réponds.
phone her	téléphoner à qqn	COI	Je lui téléphone.

Learn the first five as a group: écouter, attendre, chercher, regarder, aider. None has an à, so all take le / la / les. The English to / for / at is what pulls learners towards lui.

One more group: à plus a person, but no lui. A few verbs reach a person through à and still do not take lui. They take à + moi / toi / lui / elle / nous / vous / eux / elles instead: penser à, rêver à, faire attention à, s’intéresser à. Je pense à lui. Il fait attention à elle. Never ❌ Je lui pense. These stressed forms are in the stressed pronouns lesson. For things, not people, the pronoun is y: y and en.

5 Placement — Where Does the Pronoun Sit?

In a regular sentence, the object pronoun comes before the conjugated verb:

Situation	Example
Positive	Je le vois. Je lui parle.
Negative (‘ne’ before the pronoun)	Je ne le vois pas. Je ne lui parle pas.
Passé composé (before the auxiliary)	Je **l’**ai vu. Je leur ai parlé.
Modal + infinitive (before the infinitive)	Je veux le voir. Tu peux lui téléphoner ?
Near future	Paul va **l’**aimer.

Attention: In passé composé and negation, the pronoun stays before the auxiliary/conjugated verb, not before the participle or infinitive.

6 Imperative — Pronoun Comes After the Verb

This is the one place where the pronoun comes after the verb — only in an affirmative (yes-saying) command, joined with a hyphen:

Full command	With pronoun
Apportez cette bouteille !	Apportez-la ! (Bring it!)
Regardez le tableau !	Regardez-le ! (Look at it!)
Parlez à Sophie !	Parlez-lui ! (Talk to her!)

Two special changes in affirmative imperative:

1. me → moi, te → toi (the stressed forms after the verb): “Donne-moi ça !” (Give me that!), “Assieds-toi !” (Sit down!).
2. In a negative command, the old rule comes back — the pronoun goes before the verb again, and no moi/toi: “Ne me parle pas !”, “Ne la regarde pas !”.

7 Two Pronouns Together (Double object pronouns)

When both COD and COI appear in one sentence, there’s a strict order:

1	2	3	4	5
me / te / nous / vous	le / la / les	lui / leur	y	en

• “Mon amie a donné cette boîte à ses parents.” → “Mon amie la leur a donnée.” (She gave it to them.)
• “Tu me donnes le livre ?” → “Oui, je te le donne.” (Yes, I give it to you.)
• “Il donne la lettre à Marie ?” → “Oui, il la lui donne.” (Yes, he gives it to her.)

In an affirmative imperative the order flips — COD first, then COI, both after the verb with hyphens:

• “Apportez cette bouteille à Sophie !” → “Apportez-la-lui !” (Bring it to her!)
• “Donne ce livre à moi !” → “Donne-le-moi !” (Give it to me!)

8 Past Participle Agreement

With passé composé and avoir, there’s a special rule: when a COD comes before the verb (as a pronoun), the past participle agrees with that COD’s gender and number — exactly like an adjective (e, s, es).

COD	Sentence	Participle
le chapeau (m.)	Je **l’**ai vu.	vu (no change)
la boîte (f.)	Je l’ai vue.	+ e
les livres (m. pl.)	Je les ai vus.	+ s
les photos (f. pl.)	Je les ai vues.	+ es

• “Mon amie a donné cette boîte à ses parents.” → “Mon amie la leur a donnée.” (feminine COD ‘la’ → donné + e)

Two essential points:

1. Agreement happens only with COD, never with COI (lui/leur): “Je leur ai parlé.” (no change, because leur is indirect).
2. Agreement happens only when COD comes before the verb. “J’ai vu la boîte.” (COD after) → no agreement. “Je l’ai vue.” (COD before) → agreement.

Examples

1. Everyday Questions and Answers

• “Tu vois ce film ?” → “Oui, je le vois.” (Yes, I see it.)
• “Tu parles à ta sœur ?” → “Oui, je lui parle souvent.” (Yes, I often talk to her.)
• “Vous connaissez mes parents ?” → “Non, je ne les connais pas.” (No, I don’t know them.)

2. Commands and Two Pronouns

• “Apportez cette bouteille !” → “Apportez-la !” (Bring it!)
• “Apportez cette bouteille à Sophie !” → “Apportez-la-lui !” (Bring it to her!)
• “Tu peux me passer le sel ?” → “Passe-le-moi, s’il te plaît.” (Pass it to me, please.)

3. Passé composé and Agreement

• “Tu as pris les clés ?” → “Oui, je les ai prises.” (Yes, I took them.)
• “Elle a écrit à ses parents ?” → “Oui, elle leur a écrit.” (COI — no agreement.)

Common Mistakes and Fixes

❌ Wrong	✓ Right	Explanation
Je vois le.	Je le vois.	Object pronoun before the verb, not English word order
Il la téléphone.	Il lui téléphone.	téléphoner à — COI, so lui, not la
Apportez la !	Apportez-la !	Affirmative imperative needs a hyphen after the verb
Donne-me-le !	Donne-le-moi !	Imperative reverses to COD first, and me → moi
Mon amie la leur a donné.	Mon amie la leur a donnée.	avoir + preceding COD (la, f.) → participle agrees
Je leur ai vus.	Je les ai vus.	Agreement with COD (les), never with COI (leur)
Je lui écoute.	Je **l’**écoute.	écouter takes a direct object, though English says “listen to”
Je lui attends.	Je **l’**attends.	attendre qqn is direct: no “for”, no lui
Je lui aide.	Je **l’**aide.	aider qqn is direct, so le, la, les
Je lui pense.	Je pense à lui.	penser à + a person uses à + a stressed pronoun, never lui
Ne regarde-la pas !	Ne la regarde pas !	In a negative command the pronoun goes back before the verb
Je veux voir le.	Je veux le voir.	After a modal the pronoun sits before the infinitive

Practice

The best way to lock all this in is the Object Pronouns drill: every sentence has a blank pronoun, and you fill in the right one (le/la/les, lui/leur, imperative, or two together). Every answer comes with the full sentence and the rule.

A. Direct or indirect? Write the pronoun

B. Place and order. Write the missing word

C. Pronoun, or à + a stressed pronoun?

Answers

A. 1. le · 2. leur · 3. l’ · 4. les · 5. lui · 6. la · 7. leur · 8. l’

B. 1. la · 2. lui · 3. moi · 4. la · 5. te le · 6. la lui · 7. es · 8. le

C. 1. elle · 2. eux · 3. lui · 4. lui

Your Turn: Moving Out

A TEF/TCF-style speaking situation: Votre voisine déménage. Elle vous pose des questions. Answer each one with oui and a pronoun. Then ask her to give something back, using two pronouns.

1. Tu as appelé le propriétaire ?
2. Tu as donné les clés à Sophie ?
3. Tu attends le camion ?
4. Tu as écrit à tes parents ?
5. Tu me prêtes ta lampe ?

Model answer: Oui, je l’ai appelé. Oui, je les lui ai données. Oui, je l’attends. Oui, je leur ai écrit. Oui, je te la prête. Rends-la-moi samedi, s’il te plaît !

Next steps

• Past participle agreement: advanced rules (B2)

Mastering these pronouns will make your French sound natural and fast. Your next moves:

• Le/La/Les, Y, En — the full pronoun system with y and en.
• Imperative Mood — the complete way to give commands.
• Passé Composé — the foundation of agreement.

Challenge: Every day, build 5 question-and-answer pairs; in each answer, replace the noun with the right pronoun — start with le/la/les vs lui/leur, then imperative (Apporte-la !), then two together (Donne-le-moi !).