5.

2 The pronouns y and en

• The pronoun y often represents a location. In this case, it

usually means there.

Nous allons en Côte d’Ivoire. Nous y allons.

We go to the Ivory Coast. We go there.

Mon sac est dans ma chambre. Mon sac y est.

My purse is in my room. My purse is there.

J’habite à Ouagadougou. J’y habite.

I live in Ouagadougou. I live there.

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

• The pronoun y can stand for these common prepositions of

location and their objects.

à in or at
chez at the place or home of
dans in or inside
derrière behind
devant in front of
en in or at
sur on

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

• Y can stand for non-human objects of the preposition à.

Tu penses toujours à l’examen? Oui, j’y pense toujours.
Are you still thinking about the test? Yes, I’m still thinking about it.

Il a répondu à la question? Oui, il y a répondu.

Did he answer the question? Yes, he answered it.

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

ATTENTION!

Remember, the indirect object pronouns me, te, lui, nous,

vous, and leur stand for human objects of the preposition à.
—Avez-vous répondu à Danielle?
—Non, je ne lui ai pas encore répondu.

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

• You already know that the preposition à can be used in

contractions. The pronoun y can represent the contraction
and its object.

Vous assisterez au cours de maths? Oui, nous y assisterons.

Will you attend math class? Yes, we will attend.

Tu vas aux États-Unis? Oui, j’y vais.

Are you going to the U.S.? Yes, I’m going there.

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

ATTENTION!

The prepositions used in English do not necessarily translate

literally into French. Notice that sometimes no preposition is
used at all in English.
—Réponds tout de suite à Danielle!
—Answer Danielle right away!

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

• The pronoun en stands for the preposition de and its object.

Ils n’ont pas de villes surpeuplées. Ils n’en ont pas.

They don’t have overpopulated cities. They don’t have any.

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

• En can replace a partitive article and its object.

Voudriez-vous de la charcuterie? Nous en voudrions.
Would you like some cold cuts? We would like some.

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

• En can replace a noun that follows an expression of

quantity. In this case, omit the noun and the preposition
de/d’, but retain the expression of quantity.

Les jeunes ont beaucoup d’idéaux. Ils en ont beaucoup.

Young people have a lot of ideals. They have a lot (of them).

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

• En can replace a noun that follows a number. In this case,

omit the noun, but retain the number.

Ils veulent trois tomates? Non, ils en veulent cinq.

Do they want three tomatoes? No, they want five (of them).

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

ATTENTION!

Remember, the indefinite articles un and une are also numbers.

J’ai un frère.
I have one brother.
You can use en to represent the object of un or une. In an
affirmative sentence, retain the number.
J’en ai un.
I have one.
As with other numbers, in a negative sentence, the number is
not retained.
Je n’en ai pas.
I don’t have one.

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

• In a negative sentence, the number is not retained.

Nathalie a acheté deux litres de lait? Non, elle n’en a pas du tout acheté.
Did Nathalie buy two liters of milk? No, she didn’t buy any at all.

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5.2 The pronouns y and en

• En can represent de plus a location. In this case, it usually

means from there.

Ils reviennent de Lomé. Ils en reviennent.

They are returning from Lomé. They are returning from there.

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 5.2 The pronouns y and en

• En can also stand for a verbal expression with de. In this

case, en often means about it, for it, or from it.

Avez-vous la force de supporter ce chaos? Non, je n’en ai pas la force.

Are you strong enough to stand this chaos? No, I am not strong enough for it.

Tu es capable de manger tout le gâteau? Non, je n’en suis pas capable.

Are you capable of eating the whole cake? No, I am not capable of it.

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