Placement of y in a sentence using futur proche

Andrew F.C1Kwiziq community member

Placement of y in a sentence using futur proche

I thought there was a rule that "y" should come before the verb (including auxiliary verb). There seems to be an exception when using the futur proche? For example: Je vais y reflechir rather than J'y vais reflechir.
Asked 7 years ago
CécileNative French expert teacher in KwiziqCorrect answer

Hi Andrew,

In the case of two verbs following each other (as in this case of 'futur proche' using aller + verb), the pronoun 'y' goes in between the verbs.

e.g. 

Je vais y aller = I am going to go there

Elle rêve d'y aller = She dreams of going there

Tu vas y penser You're going to think about it 

Je demande à y aller le plus vite possible = I am asking to go there as soon as possible

Hope this helps!

Ron T.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor
Bonjour Andrew, With the lesson here, «y» is replacing a group of words, i.e. a clause, etc. that begins with «à». Here is the part of the lesson that explains this: Note that the pronoun y can also replace a group introduced by the preposition à + [thing(s)]/[object(s)]/[location(s)] (but not a person), particularly with verbs that require à. In such cases, you cannot replace the noun alone with a pronoun, you must replace the whole à + [noun] group with y. You are correct that y precedes the verb and it does in your sentence, it precedes the verb reflechir meaning the locuteur is going to reflect on something and that something is a phrase or group of words that begins with à. J'espère que cela vous aiderait. Bonne chance et bonne continuation.

Placement of y in a sentence using futur proche

I thought there was a rule that "y" should come before the verb (including auxiliary verb). There seems to be an exception when using the futur proche? For example: Je vais y reflechir rather than J'y vais reflechir.

Sign in to submit your answer

Don't have an account yet? Join today

Ask a question

Find your French level for FREE

Test your French to the CEFR standard

Find your French level
I'll be right with you...