What is the difference between direct and indirect object pronouns in French?

Direct object pronouns replace the noun that receives the action directly - 'I see HIM' uses le, 'I see HER' uses la. Indirect object pronouns replace the noun introduced by a preposition (usually a) - 'I speak TO HIM' uses lui, 'I speak TO HER' also uses lui. The third-person pronouns split (le / la for direct, lui for indirect); the others (me, te, nous, vous) are the same in both functions. The split matters because the verb decides which one - parler prend a (parler a quelqu'un), so it triggers lui, not le.

Where do French object pronouns go in a sentence?

Before the conjugated verb, always. 'Je le vois' (I see him), 'tu lui parles' (you talk to him), 'elle nous attend' (she's waiting for us). When there's an infinitive after a conjugated verb, the pronoun attaches to the infinitive: 'je vais le voir' (I'm going to see him). In compound tenses (passe compose), the pronoun goes before the auxiliary: 'je l'ai vu' (I saw him). The only exception is affirmative imperatives, where the pronoun comes after with a hyphen: 'donne-le-moi'.

French Object Pronouns

French object pronouns sit before the verb and replace nouns to avoid repetition. The pronouns are short, the position is rigid, and the main learning task is choosing direct vs indirect.

The pronouns

Person	Direct	Indirect
je (me)	me	me
tu (you, sg)	te	te
il (him / it - masc)	le	lui
elle (her / it - fem)	la	lui
nous (us)	nous	nous
vous (you, formal / pl)	vous	vous
ils / elles (them)	les	leur

The first and second persons (me, te, nous, vous) are identical for direct and indirect. The third person splits: le / la / les for direct, lui / leur for indirect.

Direct vs indirect: which one does the verb want?

The verb decides. Most verbs take a direct object (no preposition): voir quelqu'un, aimer quelqu'un, attendre quelqu'un. A small but important set takes an indirect object via the preposition a: parler a quelqu'un, donner a quelqu'un, dire a quelqu'un, telephoner a quelqu'un.

Je vois Marie. -> Je la vois. (direct - voir takes a direct object)
Je parle a Marie. -> Je lui parle. (indirect - parler takes a, so a Marie becomes lui)
Je donne le livre a Marie. -> Je lui donne le livre. (indirect - the recipient becomes lui)

Common verbs that take indirect objects (the a verbs): parler, dire, donner, telephoner, repondre, ecrire, demander, montrer, offrir, envoyer.

Preverbal position

The pronoun goes before the conjugated verb.

Je le vois. (I see him.)
Tu lui parles. (You're speaking to him / her.)
Elle nous attend. (She's waiting for us.)
Nous les aimons. (We love them.)

In compound tenses (passe compose), the pronoun goes before the auxiliary, not the participle:

Je l'ai vu. (I saw him.) - not "j'ai le vu"
Tu lui as parle. (You spoke to him.)
Nous les avons attendus. (We waited for them.)

With an infinitive after a conjugated verb (modal, futur proche), the pronoun attaches to the infinitive:

Je vais le voir demain. (I'm going to see him tomorrow.)
Tu peux lui parler? (Can you speak to him?)
Elle doit nous attendre. (She has to wait for us.)

The m' / t' / l' elision

Before a verb starting with a vowel or silent h, me / te / le / la / se drop the vowel and contract:

Je t'aime. (I love you.) - not "je te aime"
Il m'a vu. (He saw me.) - not "il me a vu"
Je l'attends. (I'm waiting for him / her.)
Nous l'avons trouve. (We found him / it.)

The elision is mandatory. Lui, nous, vous, leur, les never elide because they don't end in a vowel.

Pronoun order when two stack

When two pronouns appear together (direct + indirect, e.g. "I give it to him"), the order is fixed. The Foundation-tier sequence:

1st	2nd	3rd
me	le	lui
te	la	leur
nous	les
vous
se

Rule of thumb: me / te / nous / vous come before le / la / les, which come before lui / leur.

Il me le donne. (He gives it to me.)
Je te les envoie. (I'm sending them to you.)
Elle nous l'a dit. (She told it to us.)
Je le lui donne. (I give it to him.) - the direct precedes the indirect when both are 3rd person
Nous les leur envoyons. (We send them to them.)

The classic crash point is the third-person + third-person case: le lui, not lui le.

Imperatives: the exception

With affirmative commands, pronouns attach to the verb with hyphens, and me / te become moi / toi:

Donne-moi le livre. (Give me the book.)
Dis-le-moi. (Tell it to me.)
Parlez-lui. (Speak to him.)

With negative commands, pronouns return to their normal preverbal position:

Ne me le donne pas. (Don't give it to me.)
Ne lui parle pas. (Don't speak to him.)

Worked examples

Je l'ai rencontre hier. (I met him yesterday.)
Tu m'as appele? (Did you call me?)
Nous lui avons donne un cadeau. (We gave him a present.)
Je vais te le montrer. (I'm going to show it to you.)
Elle ne nous a pas vus. (She didn't see us.)
Donne-le-leur tout de suite. (Give it to them right now.)

Common mistakes English speakers make

Putting the pronoun after the verb because that's where English puts it: je vois le is wrong, it's je le vois. Mixing direct and indirect: writing je lui vois because "I see him" sounds like a person-receiver verb to the English ear, when actually voir takes a direct object and the right form is je le vois. And forgetting the elision: je te aime is wrong, it's je t'aime.