Chacun/chacune and chaque sound similar so it's easy to mix them up. Here's how to use them correctly.
How to use chacun/chacune and chaque in French
To express each/every in French, there are different expressions depending on sentences:
chaque [chose] : each [thing]
To say each/every [thing], you use chaque + [singular noun].
chacun/chacune des [choses] : each of [things]
To say each/every one of [things], you use chacun/chacune des + [plural noun].
ATTENTION
To say each one of us/you/them, you use chacun/chacune d'entre nous/vous/eux/elles (stress pronouns)
chacun/chacune on their own = each one, every one
To say each/every [one], you use chacun / chacune.
Chacun applies to nouns and was originally the contraction of "chaque+un / chaque+une".
It therefore agrees in gender with the person/group/thing it refers to.
It therefore agrees in gender with the person/group/thing it refers to.
ATTENTION
You cannot write chaque un as two words.
See also the opposite:
Ne ... aucun(e) = None (French Negations)
and Aucun/e … ne = None (French Negations)
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Examples and resources
I respect every one of them.
Chacun/chacune/chaque = each one/each (French Indefinite Adjectives and Pronouns)
Why do we use à in these sentences: Choisissez un Cadeau à chacun d’entre eux selon leurs goûts and on a le droit à un gateau chacun
For the second example, the expression is “avoir le droit à qqc”. https://www.wordreference.com/fren/avoir
Where does your first example come from ? I don’t see it in the lesson.
I would use ‘choisir .. un cadeau pour qqn’. There are many examples of ‘un cadeau pour qqn’ on French gift vendors’ sites, but I haven’t found any of ‘un cadeau à qqn’, except if required by the verb form eg faire un cadeau à, donner un cadeau à, acheter un cadeau à (in this case - to buy from).
This is not the situation in your example as the verb form is not ‘choisir… à NOUN’, and with a verb, it would be ‘choisir de INFINITIVE’
https://www.lawlessfrench.com/grammar/verbs-with-a/ https://www.lawlessfrench.com/grammar/verbs-with-de/
Hi Priyanka
à is a preposition taking the meaning "to" or "for" in English according to context.
choisir un cadeau à qqn. -- to choose a present to someone
avoir le droit à qqc. -- to have the right to something
Chris - do you have a reference for "choisir un cadeau à chacun...". Collins English-French translator site gives '....pour chacun . .' (both for 'for each' and 'to each'), while using "à chacun" with offrir, donner, faire.
It may be that both forms are correct or there is disgreement, as at least some native speakers I know would use 'choisir pour . .'
Hi, thank you for helping me out with my query. I was wondering if 'pour' could be used instead of à. Many times à is used in sentences that would mean for in English. So, if someone could help me out with when à can be used and when pour can be used. Merci beaucoup!
@Maarten: It's definitely something I haven't heard used often. To my ears, it sounds like "to choose a gift to someone" as opposed to "for someone". Doesn't work well in English, I know.It would be helpful to know the entire sentence and where it comes from.
Bonjour,
Merci pour votre réponse. C'est une instruction d'exercice dans un livre intitulé Synchronie-1, Leçon 3. It is an exercise instruction in a book called Synchronie-1, Leçon 3.
So this exercise asks you to associate a gift with each person. Now this makes a lot more sense! Context is everything.
Why do we use à in these sentences: Choisissez un Cadeau à chacun d’entre eux selon leurs goûts and on a le droit à un gateau chacun
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Chacun, chacune, chaque change order in title
The phrases on the two sides of the "=" in the title are not parallel, so this makes it confusing from the get-go as to which is the pronoun and which are indefinite adjectives. I suggest changing it to "Chaque, chacun, chacune = each, each one.." and so forth.
Hi Melody,
As Alan points out I took it to be a formatting problem. I get your very valid point and have changed the English equivalents to their correct position.
Thank you very much for pointing this out and bonne continuation!
Hi Melody,
So have you put your point to the help desk?
Not sure what it is that you would have the language forum do about this point?
Jim
I think you're taking the word "parallel" too literally, Cécile. Melody is just suggesting that the words' meanings should be in the same order in French and English. "Chaque" means "each", while "chacun" means "each one", so it would help if the order in the title reflected this.
Chacun, chacune, chaque change order in title
The phrases on the two sides of the "=" in the title are not parallel, so this makes it confusing from the get-go as to which is the pronoun and which are indefinite adjectives. I suggest changing it to "Chaque, chacun, chacune = each, each one.." and so forth.
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Can "On a le droit à un gâteau chacun" be written as "Chacun a le droit à un gâteau"?
Hi Joan,
Yes, indeed you can say it both ways.
Can "On a le droit à un gâteau chacun" be written as "Chacun a le droit à un gâteau"?
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related lessons: aucun(e)...ne and ne...aucun(e)
It may be useful to link lessons for 'aucun(e)', the opposite of chacun(e).
Bonjour Jinn !
Thanks for that excellent suggestion! The links have now been added to that lesson :)
Merci et bonne journée !
related lessons: aucun(e)...ne and ne...aucun(e)
It may be useful to link lessons for 'aucun(e)', the opposite of chacun(e).
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Verb conjuction after Chaqun(e) des .....
The literal translation is "each (one) of the women" and works the same way: each of the women brings / chacune [not "chaqune"] des femmes apporte.
I think it is because we are talking about each one of them (chacun/chacune) but with a collective result that they all do it.
I hadn’t noticed that. Thanks for highlighting this. Reading through the answers has improved my understanding on this point.
Verb conjuction after Chaqun(e) des .....
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