Look at these sentences:
Ces épisodes? Il les avait déjà vus.
These episodes? He had already seen them.
La télé? Oui, Marc l'a regardée.
Telly? Yes, Marc watched it.
Et le concert ? Les enfants l'ont adoré.
What about the concert? The children loved it.
Olivier t'a demandée en mariage !
Olivier proposed to you!
Tu lui as parlé.
You talked to her.
Ça leur est arrivé la semaine dernière.
It happened to them last week.
In a sentence with a verb conjugated in a compound tense, the object pronoun, indirect or direct, is placed as follows:
Subject of the verb + object pronoun + auxiliary avoir or être + past participle
See also the more advanced lesson on past participle agreement with direct objects: Special cases when the past participle agrees (in number & gender) when used with 'avoir' in Le Passé Composé
See also:
Replacing nouns with le, la, l', les = it, him, her, them (direct object pronouns)
Me, te, nous, vous = Me, you, us, you (direct and indirect object pronouns)
Replacing people with lui, leur = him, her, them (indirect object pronouns)
Learn more about these related French grammar topics
Examples and resources
Tu lui as parlé.
You talked to her.
Ces épisodes? Il les avait déjà vus.
These episodes? He had already seen them.
Olivier t'a demandée en mariage !
Olivier proposed to you!
La télé? Oui, Marc l'a regardée.
Telly? Yes, Marc watched it.
Ça leur est arrivé la semaine dernière.
It happened to them last week.
Et le concert ? Les enfants l'ont adoré.
What about the concert? The children loved it.
Q&A
Cécile
Kwiziq language super star
7/10/18
Hi Jack,
Could you post the whole sentence please?
Chris
Kwiziq community member
7/10/18
If you look at the sentence in question (and, yes, it would be helpful to know what exactly you are referring to) you'll probably notice that there is a direct object coming somewhere before the participle. Something along these lones:
Les fleures sont très belles. Tu les as vues ?
If the direct object (les) precedes the participle, the participle matches the direct object in number and gender.
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
8/06/18
Bonjour Ron !
Unfortunately, I don't know what answer you're referring to, so can't really help you yet :)
Cécile
Kwiziq language super star
8/06/18
Ron
Kwiziq community member
9/06/18
Problem resolved. Found the answer in another lesson on the same subject.
Hugh
Kwiziq community member
10 May 2018
1 reply
Agreement of Participle with Indirect Object
Whoops, my question was posted incomplete.
As I was saying (!), in the examples there is agreement between the indirect object and the participle:
La télé? Oui, Marc l'a regardée
Ces épisodes? Il les avait déjà vus
If this is the case, then shouldn't 'Tu lui as parlé' translate as 'You talked to him', BUT 'Tu lui as parlée translate as 'You talked to her'?
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
10/05/18
Bonjour Hugh !
Actually you never agree the past participle with an indirect object, only a direct object placed before the auxiliary avoir.
Have a look at our related lesson:
https://progress.lawlessfrench.com/revision/grammar/special-cases-when-the-past-participle-agrees-in-number-and-gender-when-used-with-avoir-in-le-passe-compose-conversational-past
I hope that's helpful!
À bientôt !
Chris
Kwiziq community member
18/02/18
What do you need to know over and above what's said in the lesson? Can you be more specific?
-- Chris.
Chris
Kwiziq community member
18/02/18
What do you need to know over and above what's said in the lesson? Can you be more specific?
-- Chris.
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
2/01/18
Bonjour Stuart !
Oui tout à fait!
See our article on elision :)
https://progress.lawlessfrench.com/my-languages/french/glossary/85
Bonne journée !
Stephen
Kwiziq community member
4 November 2017
3 replies
Re: "Laura adore ces bonbons. Tu les as goûtés?"
"Respectfully submit that the English translation is wrong here...shouldn't it say "Have you tasted them?" (present perfect)...not "Did you taste them?"?
Chris
Kwiziq community member
4/11/17
Stephen
Kwiziq community member
4/11/17
Jim
Kwiziq community member
7/11/17
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
18 October 2016
3 replies
Kristin asked: "Je l'ai épousée." Why the "- e" at the end of "épousée" ?"
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
18/10/16
This is due to a more advanced rule of agreement with "avoir" as auxiliary.
Though you've learnt that the past participle never agrees with the subject of the verb with "avoir" as auxiliary, it can agree with the direct object of the verb when this one is placed before "avoir".
This is the case when using direct object pronouns, as they're always placed before the auxiliary in compound tenses.
Here is a link to our related lesson:
https://progress.lawlessfrench.com/my-languages/french/view/429
I hope that's helpful!
À bientôt !
Kathy
Kwiziq community member
16/12/16
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
17/03/17
Lalongi
Kwiziq community member
25 October 2018
1 reply
Agreement when using etre for the past tense? If you have a masculine or singular subejct, but your DO is feminine ro plural, do you make agreement?
Ex) Il est monté la tour Eiffel.
Il l'est monté or Il l'est montée?
Cécile
Kwiziq language super star
26 October 2018
26/10/18
Hi Lalongi,
Il a monté la Tour Eiffel en escalier --- Il l'a montée en escalier
Note the use of 'avoir' with 'monter quelque chose'.
I prefer to use the verb 'escalader' here :
Le cascadeur a escaladé la Tour Eiffel à mains nues = The Stunt man climbed the Eiffel Tower with bare hands
So it will be also -"Il l'a escaladée"
Hope this helps!