Stressed pronouns - moi, toi, luiWhen and how to use stressed pronouns

The following examples will show you how to use stressed pronouns in a variety of contexts.

Stressed pronouns on their own

When answering a question about yourself or others, you would choose the correct pronoun to describe who you are talking about, for example:

• qui est-là ? (who’s there?) → moi (me)
• qui va venir ? (who is going to come?) → lui (him)

Stressed pronouns after prepositions

Stressed pronouns are used after prepositions such as avec (with), pour (for), sans (without), chez (at the house of), for example:

• nous partons avec vous - we're going with you
• il a un cadeau pour elle - he's got a present for her
• je ne voyage jamais sans lui ! - I never travel without him!
• elle habite chez toi ? - does she live at your place?

Stressed pronouns for emphasis

Stressed pronouns are also used to emphasise the subject pronouns, for example:

• moi, j’adore les cerises, mais elle, elle préfère les fraises – (me) I love cherries, but (her) she prefers strawberries
• lui, il aime partir tout seul, mais moi, j’aime beaucoup voyager en groupe - (him) he likes to go all alone, but (me) I prefer group travel

Stressed pronouns with à

You can use a stressed pronoun after à to indicate who something belongs to, for example:

• ce livre est à moi - this book is mine
• la voiture est à lui - the car is his

Stressed pronouns in comparisons

When making a comparison more … than, less … than or as … as in respect of a person you use a stressed pronoun, for example:

• il est plus rapide que moi ! - he is faster than me
• je suis moins grand que lui - I am smaller than him (literally, I am less tall than him)
• Marie est aussi jolie que toi ! - Marie is as pretty as you!

Stressed pronouns with même

When emphasising who has done something you use the word même to mean self or selves, eg myself, yourself, themselves:

• je l’ai fait moi-même - I did it myself
• ils ont organisé la visite eux-mêmes - they organised the trip themselves