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Chapter 1: Been There, Done That: Passé Proche and Passé Composé
Book V
Going Back
in Time
Je me suis lavé(e). (I washed myself.)
Je me suis lavé les cheveux. (I washed my hair.)
Elle s’est lavée. (She washed herself.)
Elle s’est lavé les cheveux. (She washed her hair.)
Past participles don’t agree with indirect objects. This rule applies to verbs
taking the auxiliary avoir as well as to pronominal verbs. Table 1-8 shows the
indirect-object pronouns.
Table 1-8 Indirect-Object Pronouns
French Pronoun English Equivalent
me to me
te to you
se to himself/herself/themselves (for
pronominal verbs only)
lui to him/her
nous to us
vous to you
leur to them
Lui and leur are always indirect objects, but the reflexive pronouns me, te, se,
nous, and vous can be direct- or indirect-object pronouns.
To figure out whether these pronouns are direct or indirect objects of the
verb, reason it out as follows: In the sentence Marie et Jean se sont parlé
(Marie and Jean spoke to each other), the verb parler is in the passé composé
and in the reflexive form. It’s conjugated with the auxiliary verb être. Ask your-
self whether the verb parler introduces a person like Jean directly or with the
preposition à. In other words, is the sentence saying Marie parle à Jean or
Marie parle Jean? The fact that the correct sentence includes à Jean indicates
that the verb parler introduces an indirect object; therefore, se is an indirect
object, so the past participle parlé doesn’t agree with se in this sentence.
In the sentence Marie et Jean se sont regardés (Marie and Jean looked at each
other), the verb regarder is in the passé composé and in the reflexive form.
It’s conjugated with the auxiliary verb être. Ask yourself whether the verb
regarder introduces a person like Jean directly or with the preposition à. In
other words, would you say Marie regarde à Jean or Marie regarde Jean? The
fact that the correct sentence is Marie regarde Jean indicates that the verb
regarder introduces a direct object; therefore, se is the direct object, and the
past participle regardés must agree with se (plural) in this sentence.
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