French conjugation explanation

Agreement with indefinite pronouns and collective subjects

<p>In compound tenses like the

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/study/tenseGuideForTense/81/" target="_blank">Passé Composé</a>

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext verb_link" href="/study/conjugations/fra/%C3%AAtre/" title="Click to see conjugations for être" target="_blank">être</a>

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/conjugationExplanation/missing_agreement_for_etre_form/" target="_blank">click here for the basic rule</a>

<p>This is easy when the subject is <span style="font-style: italic;">il</span> or <span style="font-style: italic;">elles</span>, but some subjects hide their gender and number: <strong>indefinite pronouns</strong> (<span style="font-style: italic;">personne, rien, tout le monde</span>) and <strong>collective or quantity expressions</strong> (<span style="font-style: italic;">la moitié, la plupart</span>). This guide shows which form to use.</p>

<p>Most of these subjects also take a <strong>singular verb</strong> (the <span style="font-style: italic;">il / elle</span> form): see

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/conjugationExplanation/french_on_singular/" target="_blank">pronouns treated as singular</a>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">Indefinite pronouns: masculine singular by default</div>

<p>The pronouns <strong style="font-style: italic;">personne</strong> (nobody), <strong style="font-style: italic;">rien</strong> (nothing), <strong style="font-style: italic;">tout le monde</strong> (everybody), <strong style="font-style: italic;">quelqu'un</strong> (someone) and <strong style="font-style: italic;">quelque chose</strong> (something) are treated as <strong>masculine singular</strong>. The past participle keeps its default form (no <span style="font-style: italic;">-e</span>, no <span style="font-style: italic;">-s</span>).</p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Personne n'<span class="green_emphasis">est venu</span>. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Nobody came.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(<span style="font-style: italic;">Personne</span> is masculine singular &#8594; <span style="font-style: italic;">venu</span>, not <span style="font-style: italic;">venue</span>.)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Rien n'<span class="green_emphasis">est arrivé</span> pendant la nuit. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Nothing happened during the night.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Tout le monde <span class="green_emphasis">est parti</span> avant minuit. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Everybody left before midnight.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(Even if the group is all women, <span style="font-style: italic;">tout le monde</span> stays masculine singular &#8594; <span style="font-style: italic;">parti</span>.)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Quelqu'un <span class="green_emphasis">est entré</span> sans frapper. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Someone came in without knocking.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">The trap: the pronoun <span style="font-style: italic;">personne</span> vs. the noun <span style="font-style: italic;">une personne</span></div>

<p>The word <span style="font-style: italic;">personne</span> exists twice. As a <strong>noun</strong>, <span style="font-style: italic;">une personne</span> (a person) is <strong>feminine</strong>. As an <strong>indefinite pronoun</strong>, <span style="font-style: italic;">personne</span> (nobody) is <strong>masculine singular</strong> and invariable. Learners often wrongly carry the feminine of the noun over to the pronoun.</p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence"><span class="brown_emphasis">Une personne</span> est <span class="green_emphasis">venue</span> te voir. (<span style="font-style: italic;">A person came to see you.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(The noun <span style="font-style: italic;">une personne</span> is feminine singular &#8594; <span style="font-style: italic;">venue</span>.)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Tom a attendu, mais personne n'<span class="green_emphasis">est venu</span>. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Tom waited, but nobody came.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(The pronoun <span style="font-style: italic;">personne</span> is masculine singular &#8594; <span style="font-style: italic;">venu</span>, even though <span style="font-style: italic;">une personne</span> is feminine.)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">Pronouns that follow the gender of their referent</div>

<p>A few pronouns are singular but take the gender of what they replace: <strong style="font-style: italic;">chacun / chacune</strong> (each one), <strong style="font-style: italic;">l'un / l'une</strong>, <strong style="font-style: italic;">aucun / aucune</strong> (none).</p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Mes sœurs ? <span class="brown_emphasis">Chacune</span> est <span class="green_emphasis">rentrée</span> chez elle. (<span style="font-style: italic;">My sisters? Each one went back home.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(<span style="font-style: italic;">Chacune</span> refers to <span style="font-style: italic;">sœurs</span> [feminine] &#8594; feminine singular <span style="font-style: italic;">rentrée</span>.)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Aucune de ces <span class="brown_emphasis">lettres</span> n'est <span class="green_emphasis">arrivée</span>. (<span style="font-style: italic;">None of these letters arrived.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">Collective nouns and fractions: <span style="font-style: italic;">la moitié</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">la plupart</span></div>

<p>With a collective subject followed by <span style="font-style: italic;">de + noun</span>, the verb and participle can follow either the <strong>collective</strong> (singular) or its <strong>complement</strong> (often plural). You choose according to the meaning: the whole, or the individuals.</p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">La moitié des <span class="brown_emphasis">invités</span> sont <span class="green_emphasis">venus</span>. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Half of the guests came.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(Focus on the individuals <span style="font-style: italic;">invités</span> [masculine plural] &#8594; <span style="font-style: italic;">sont venus</span>.)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">La moitié de la <span class="brown_emphasis">classe</span> est <span class="green_emphasis">partie</span> en voyage. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Half of the class went on a trip.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(Focus on the whole, singular complement &#8594; <span style="font-style: italic;">est partie</span>, feminine singular.)</div>

<p><strong style="font-style: italic;">La plupart</strong> almost always takes the <strong>plural</strong>, agreeing with its complement:</p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">La plupart des <span class="brown_emphasis">élèves</span> sont <span class="green_emphasis">rentrés</span> tard. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Most of the students got home late.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">La plupart d'entre <span class="brown_emphasis">elles</span> sont déjà <span class="green_emphasis">arrivées</span>. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Most of them have already arrived.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(<span style="font-style: italic;">d'entre elles</span> &#8594; feminine plural <span style="font-style: italic;">arrivées</span>.)</div>

<p>Other collectives (<span style="font-style: italic;">un grand nombre de, une foule de, la majorité de</span>) follow the same logic: plural when you picture the individuals, singular when you picture the group.</p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">Quantity words: <span style="font-style: italic;">beaucoup</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">peu</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">plus d'un</span></div>

<p>After <strong style="font-style: italic;">beaucoup de, peu de, trop de, combien de, tant de</strong>, agreement follows the <strong>complement</strong>.</p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Beaucoup d'<span class="brown_emphasis">étudiantes</span> sont <span class="green_emphasis">parties</span> en stage. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Many students went off on an internship.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(Feminine plural <span style="font-style: italic;">étudiantes</span> &#8594; <span style="font-style: italic;">parties</span>.)</div>

<p>Two expressions go against the logic of their numbers:</p>

<ul>

<li><strong style="font-style: italic;">plus d'un</strong> takes the <strong>singular</strong>: <span style="font-style: italic;">Plus d'un invité est venu.</span> (<span style="font-style: italic;">More than one guest came.</span>)</li>

<li><strong style="font-style: italic;">moins de deux</strong> takes the <strong>plural</strong>: <span style="font-style: italic;">Moins de deux ans se sont écoulés.</span> (<span style="font-style: italic;">Less than two years went by.</span>)</li>

</ul>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">Joined subjects: <span style="font-style: italic;">et</span>, <span style="font-style: italic;">ni... ni</span></div>

<p>Two subjects joined by <strong style="font-style: italic;">et</strong> give a plural participle; if any element is masculine, the group is <strong>masculine plural</strong> (more on this in

<a class="conjugation_explanation_link_intext" href="/conjugationExplanation/french_participle_agreement_by_context/" target="_blank">inferring the subject</a>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Marie et moi sommes <span class="green_emphasis">allés</span> à la fête. (<span style="font-style: italic;">Marie and I went to the party.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence_note">(The group includes a man &#8594; masculine plural <span style="font-style: italic;">allés</span>.)</div>

<p>With <strong style="font-style: italic;">ni... ni</strong> or <strong style="font-style: italic;">l'un ou l'autre</strong>, both singular and plural are accepted:</p>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_example_sentence">Ni Paul ni Luc n'est <span class="green_emphasis">venu</span> (ou ne sont <span class="green_emphasis">venus</span>). (<span style="font-style: italic;">Neither Paul nor Luc came.</span>)</div>

<div class="conjugation_explanation_title">Quick reference</div>

<ul>

<li><span style="font-style: italic;">personne, rien, tout le monde, quelqu'un, quelque chose, on</span> &#8594; masculine singular (<span style="font-style: italic;">venu, parti</span>).</li>

<li><span style="font-style: italic;">une personne</span> (noun) &#8594; feminine (<span style="font-style: italic;">venue</span>); do not confuse it with the pronoun.</li>

<li><span style="font-style: italic;">chacune, aucune, l'une</span> &#8594; gender of the referent.</li>

<li><span style="font-style: italic;">la moitié de, la majorité de, un grand nombre de</span> + plural &#8594; usually plural; + singular &#8594; singular.</li>

<li><span style="font-style: italic;">la plupart</span> &#8594; plural.</li>

<li><span style="font-style: italic;">beaucoup de, peu de, trop de</span> + noun &#8594; agree with the noun.</li>

<li><span style="font-style: italic;">plus d'un</span> &#8594; singular; <span style="font-style: italic;">moins de deux</span> &#8594; plural.</li>

</ul>