conjugation with a named subject

Question

I'm not clear on the rule for verb conjugation when the subject has a name e.g., James, and then what when 2 named subjects - James and Martha (mixed gender) are doing the same thing, does that differ in terms of conjugation rules? and then what about plural same gender or mixed group?

Accepted Answer

Hi Alan,
If you wish to write "James" for example, you would use the grammatical third person. In this example, the subject pronoun would be "il".
If on the other hand, you wanted to use two subjects then you would need to use the grammatical first-person plural "nous". Just a word of caution, however, if you were to write "nous" then the two names, in addition, the danger is that this construction could seem to appear to be reflexive usage "Nous nous" when that is not the intention. This aspect may not be an issue if the context is clear.
I recommend that you revisit grammatical "persons" to further aid your understanding.
Hope this helps.
Jim

Answer

Bonjour Alan,
Jim's explanation is great! Here are few examples illustrating the agreement of the verb:

Henri (il) mange une pomme = Henri (he) eats an apple 
Henri et Julie (ils) mangent une pomme = Henri and Julie (they) eat an apple

Julie (elle) mange une banane = Julie (she) eats a banana
Julie et Sophie (elles) mangent une banane = Julie and Sophie (they) eat a banana

Marc (il) boit du café = Marc (he) drinks coffee
Marc et toi (vous) buvez du café = Marc and you (you) drink coffee

Marine (elle) boit du thé = Marine (she) drinks tea
Marine et toi (vous) buvez du thé = Marine and you (you) drink tea

Je cuisine = I cook
Henri et moi (nous) cuisinons = Henri and I (we) cook

Here is a link on using 'nous/vous/ils/elles' and how to conjugate the verb: use-the-nous-vous-or-ils-elles-form-when-conjugating-verbs-for-multiple-people
I hops this is helpful.
Bonne journée !

Answer

Thanks Céline,It wasn't the subject pronouns I had a problem with but how the verb functions. Your explanation has sorted it!