Pronominal Verbs

When one pronoun just isn't enough

Think you don't know what pronominal verbs are? 🤔 If you can introduce yourself and talk about your morning ablutions in French, you definitely do. The grammatical term pronominal means "relating to a pronoun" - in this case, it refers to the reflexive pronoun required for verbs like s'appeler and se laver.

Many French students are first introduced to reflexive verbs and then continue using this term for all verbs that need a reflexive pronoun, but in fact

there are 4️ different kinds of French pronominal verbs, depending on the meaning / purpose of the pronoun.

Today’s issue of Lawless French à fond takes an in-depth look at understanding, conjugating, and using pronominal verbs.

Table of Contents

1. Lessons

2. Listening

3. Quiz Time

4. Writing

5. Juste pour rigoler

6. Remerciements

Lessons

Pronominal verbs 101 🎬

You know that conjugated verbs (almost*) always need a subject pronoun, but pronominal verbs need a reflexive pronoun as well. Start with this introductory lesson to master the basics of pronominal verbs.

Once you understand the key concepts, dive into the four different types of pronominal verbs.

1) Reflexive verbs 🤳

The subject acts on itself.

Je me lève. - I'm getting up.

2) Reciprocal verbs 👥

The subjects act on each other.

Nous nous voyons. - We see each other.

3) Idiomatic pronominal verbs ≠

The meaning of the verb changes.

Ils s'entendent bien. - They get along well.

4) Essentially pronominal verbs 🎗️

The verb can only be used pronominally.

Tu te souviens ? - Do you remember?

Advanced topics 😣

Pronominal verbs in all tenses and moods

Je m'habillais, je me suis habillé ...
I was getting dressed, I got dressed ...

Agreement with pronominal verbs

Elle s'est réveillée, nous nous sommes réveillés ...
She woke up, we woke up...

Passive reflexive

Le français se parle ici.
French is spoken here.

* Exception: imperatives

Listening

Practice your comprehension of pronominal verbs in context with these audio articles.

Vive le printemps ! A1

Carte postale A2

À quoi ça sert de recycler ses déchets ? B1

Des vacances mémorables B2

L'histoire de la Saint-Sylvestre C1

🙋 A1 - A2 - B1 - B2 - C1 ?

These are 5 of the 6 CEFR proficiency levels.

Quiz Time

Test yourself on pronominal verbs in various tenses.

• Present tense (multiple choice)

• Near future (fill in the blanks)

• Passé composé (multiple choice)

Want more? 💪 Take a look at this collection of lessons - you can test against it over and over, or save it as a notebook.

• Pronominal verbs & reflexive pronouns

Writing

Practice your French translation skills with these writing exercises.

A day in my cat's life A1

Strange encounter B1

A year full of changes B2

Difficult sibling relationship C1

Juste pour rigoler

Comic courtesy of Malachi Ray Rempen, ItchyFeetComic.com

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💗 Remerciements

Thanks for reading Lawless French à fond - see you in two weeks!

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