How to Use Tonic Stressed and Disjunctive Pronouns in French

Tonic pronouns in French, also called stressed or disjunctive pronouns, are used to emphasise a person, answer a question briefly or follow a preposition. They include moi, toi, lui, elle, nous, vous, eux and elles.

This guide explains how to use French tonic pronouns, how they differ from subject and object pronouns, and which common mistakes to avoid. If you would like personalised help putting French grammar into practice, my online French lessons are adapted to your level and goals

Tonic pronouns are independent pronouns used when a person needs to be emphasised or when a pronoun appears without a conjugated verb.

The terms tonic pronouns, stressed pronouns and disjunctive pronouns all refer to the same group of French pronouns. In French, they are called les pronoms toniques or les pronoms disjoints.

If you need an overview of subject, object, relative and adverbial pronouns first, you can consult my complete guide to French pronouns.

The English equivalents are approximate because the natural translation depends on the sentence.

• Moi, je préfère le thé. (Personally, I prefer tea.)
• Tu viens avec nous ? (Are you coming with us?)
• Ce sont eux qui ont organisé la réunion. (They are the ones who organised the meeting.)

The pronouns elle, nous and vous have the same written form as their corresponding subject pronouns. Their function and position in the sentence reveal whether they are being used as subject or tonic pronouns.

French stressed pronouns are used in several common situations. In each case, the pronoun stands independently or receives particular emphasis.

A tonic pronoun can appear before a subject pronoun to draw attention to a person or create a contrast.

• Moi, je préfère travailler le matin. (I prefer working in the morning.)
• Lui, il parle espagnol, mais elle, elle parle italien. (He speaks Spanish, but she speaks Italian.)
• Nous, nous allons rester ici. (We are going to stay here.)

The subject pronoun is still required before the verb. You cannot normally say Moi préfère le café. It must be:

• Moi, je préfère le café. (I prefer coffee.)

In English, the tonic pronoun may be translated as personally, as for me or simply through vocal emphasis.

Tonic pronouns can be used alone when the rest of the sentence is already understood.

• Qui veut venir ? — Moi ! (Who wants to come? — Me!)
• Qui a préparé le dîner ? — Lui. (Who made dinner? — Him.)
• Qui parle français ? — Eux. (Who speaks French? — They do).

Subject pronouns cannot be used independently in these answers. For example, you cannot answer je instead of moi.

Tonic pronouns are used after c’est and ce sont to identify or emphasise someone.

• C’est moi. (It’s me.)
• C’est elle qui a appelé. (She is the one who called.)
• Ce sont eux qui habitent ici. (They are the ones who live here.)

When qui follows a tonic pronoun, the verb agrees with the person represented: C’est moi qui suis responsable and C’est vous qui avez réservé.

A French tonic pronoun is normally used after a preposition such as avec, pour, sans, chez or contre.

• Il s’est assis devant nous (He sat in front of us)
• Nous ne partirons pas sans eux. (We will not leave without them.)
• Je vais dîner chez elle. (I’m going to have dinner at her house.)

Use a tonic pronoun, not a subject pronoun, after a preposition: avec lui, not avec il.

To review expressions such as devant, derrière and à côté de, see my guide to French prepositions of place.

Tonic pronouns are also used when two or more people are joined by et, ou or ni.

• Paul et moi, nous travaillons ensemble. (Paul and I work together.)
• Toi et lui, vous pouvez commencer. (You can both begin.)
• Ni elle ni moi ne connaissons la réponse. (Neither she nor I know the answer.)

In French, it is natural to repeat the group with a subject pronoun such as nous or vous.

Tonic pronouns are used after comparative expressions with que.

• Elle est plus grande que moi. (She is taller than me.)
• Tu cours plus vite que lui. (You run faster than him.)
• Ils travaillent autant que nous. (They work as much as we do.)

The tonic pronoun avoids repeating the complete clause when its meaning is already clear. To explore another common difficulty with French comparisons, read Mieux vs Meilleur : how to choose the correct one.

Tonic pronouns are used with aussi and non plus to express agreement.

• J’aime ce quartier. — Moi aussi. (I like this neighbourhood. — So do I.)
• Je ne comprends pas. — Moi non plus. (I don’t understand. — Neither do I.)

Soi is generally used when the subject does not refer to one specific person. It often appears with on, chacun, tout le monde, personne or an impersonal expression.

• Il faut avoir confiance en soi. (You need to have confidence in yourself.)
• Chacun doit penser à soi. (Everyone must think about themselves.)
• On se sent mieux chez soi. (You feel better in your own home.)
• Chacun pour soi. (Every person for themselves.)

When the subject refers to a clearly identified person, French normally uses lui, elle, lui-même or elle-même instead.

• Paul ne pense qu’à lui. (Paul only thinks about himself.)
• Marie a fait le travail elle-même. (Marie did the work herself.)

The same English pronoun can correspond to several different French forms. The correct form depends on its function in the sentence.

A subject pronoun appears directly before the conjugated verb.

• Il travaille à Paris. (He works in Paris.)

A tonic pronoun can be used for emphasis or after a preposition.

• Lui, il travaille à Paris. (He works in Paris.)
• Je travaille avec lui. (I work with him.)

The word lui can be confusing because it has two different functions in French.

When lui is an indirect object pronoun, it comes before the verb and can refer to either a man or a woman:

• Je lui parle.
  I am speaking to him or her.

When lui is a tonic pronoun, it usually follows a preposition and refers only to a masculine person:

• Je pense à lui.
  I am thinking about him.
• Je pars avec lui.
  I am leaving with him.

For a feminine person, use the tonic pronoun elle:

• Je pense à elle.
  I am thinking about her.

You can learn more about this distinction in my guide to French direct and indirect object pronouns.

With certain verbs followed by à or de, French may use a tonic pronoun for a person but y or en for a thing.

• Je pense à Paul. → Je pense à lui.
  I am thinking about Paul. → I am thinking about him.
• Je pense à mon travail. → J’y pense.
  I am thinking about my work. → I am thinking about it.
• Elle est fière de sa fille. → Elle est fière d’elle.
  She is proud of her daughter. → She is proud of her.
• Elle est fière de son travail. → Elle en est fière.
  She is proud of her work. → She is proud of it.

The exact choice also depends on the construction of the verb, so avoid replacing every phrase introduced by à or de in the same way. My guide to the French pronouns en and y explains these two forms in more detail.

In affirmative commands, me and te change to moi and toi. They are placed after the verb and connected to it with a hyphen.

• Regarde-moi ! (Look at me!)
• Lève-toi ! (Get up!)

However, lui remains an indirect object pronoun in a sentence such as Donne-lui ton adresse.

In negative commands, the pronoun comes before the verb and moi and toi return to me and te.

• Ne me regarde pas. (Don’t look at me.)
• Ne te lève pas. (Don’t get up.)

For the complete word order, see my guide to the French imperative.