y/i/
pronoun · A2 · Frequency 69
pronouncommon
Meanings
there; to there; replaces à-phrases (place/thing)
As a pronoun, y replaces an adverbial phrase starting with à, commonly used with certain verbs followed by à and a few adjectives, especially in legal terminology.
Examples
Tu connais ce village ? Nous y passerons demain.
Do you know this village? We will go there tomorrow.
Après le déménagement, ils y ont installé leur atelier.
After moving, they set up their workshop there.
Le musée est fermé aujourd'hui, mais nous y retournerons samedi.
The museum is closed today, but we will return there on Saturday.
Collocations
- y allerto go there
- y penserto think about it
- y comprisincluding
Common mistakes
Je vais y à Paris.
Je vais à Paris.
y already replaces the prepositional phrase 'à Paris'; repeating 'à' creates redundancy and violates French pronoun placement rules.
Il pense y.
Il y pense.
y is a clitic object pronoun and must be placed before the conjugated verb (or after 'ne' in negative constructions); post-verbal placement is ungrammatical.
Related words
Grammar note
The pronoun y replaces adverbial phrases introduced by the preposition à indicating place or non-human indirect objects, commonly used with certain verbs followed by à and a few adjectives.
pronouncommon
Meanings
replaces à + a thing (not a person)
Used in spoken or informal contexts as alternative personal pronouns
Examples
Tu peux demander à Paul, et il y répondra rapidement.
You can ask Paul, and he will answer quickly.
Ils y vont tous les samedis pour faire du sport ensemble.
They go there every Saturday to do sports together.
Marie y pense souvent quand elle est seule à la maison.
Marie often thinks about it when she is alone at home.
Collocations
- y vahe goes
- y sontthey are there
- y fontthey do it