You've already learned that the pronoun y is used to mean there (See Y = There (adverbial pronoun)).
Here is another usage of y.
Look at these sentences:
Nous pensons à faire nos devoirs. Nous y pensons.
We're thinking about doing our homework. We're thinking about it.
Il pense à ses vacances. Il y pense.
He's thinking of his holidays. He's thinking of it.
Elle répond à une lettre. Elle y répond.
She's answering a letter. She's answering it.
Nous nous intéressons au sport. Nous nous y intéressons.
We're interested in sport. We're interested in it.
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.
ATTENTION:
In the case of people, the group à + [people] will be replaced by an indirect pronoun. See Replacing people with lui, leur = him, her, them (indirect object pronouns) and Me, te, nous, vous = Me, you, us, you (direct and indirect object pronouns).
Also see En can replace de + phrase (adverbial pronoun)
Learn more about these related French grammar topics
Examples and resources
penser à
Il pense à ses vacances. Il y pense.
He's thinking of his holidays. He's thinking of it.
Nous pensons à faire nos devoirs. Nous y pensons.
We're thinking about doing our homework. We're thinking about it.
répondre à
Elle répond à une lettre. Elle y répond.
She's answering a letter. She's answering it.
s'intéresser à
Nous nous intéressons au sport. Nous nous y intéressons.
We're interested in sport. We're interested in it.
Q&A
Michael
Kwiziq community member
5 May 2018
2 replies
The pronoun Y
I am not clear on these two examples even after rereading the lesson. I can't see the exact phrase or object that is being replaced (assuming its introduced by à or a prepositional verb). Is there another situation where "en" can be used.
- Tu te rappelles quand Luc a perdu à Donkey Kong à deux secondes de la fin ? J'ai les boules à chaque fois que j'y pense !
- Quand j'ai vu le “Game Over”, je n'arrivais pas à y croire ! Il me reste quatre tickets, et toi ?
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
5/05/18
Bonjour Michael !
Here you have to look at the verbs used in the clauses with "y":
- "à chaque fois que j'y pense !"
-> here the verb is penser à [quelque chose]
- "je n'arrivais pas à y croire !"
-> here the structure is croire à/en [quelque chose]
I hope that's helpful!
Bonne journée !
Michael
Kwiziq community member
6/05/18
Of course! Thank you Aurélie,
I had only been looking in the first sentence for 'y' candidates, but the answer is obvious now that you have pointed it out.
Am I correct to also assume that , under most circumstances, if the verb was verb + de [quelque chose] then the adverbial pronoun would be en.
Also, under the right conditions( I have read your lessons an à and de), if it was a non prepositional verb the pronoun would be le.
Leah
Kwiziq community member
29/04/18
Ron
Kwiziq community member
9/09/17
Ron
Kwiziq community member
9/09/17
John
Kwiziq community member
9/09/17
Ron
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24/08/17
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
16/01/17
Andy
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16/01/17
Laura
Kwiziq language super star
7/01/16
Laura
Kwiziq language super star
18/11/15
Bonjour C,
Penser can be followed by à or not, with a very slight difference in meaning.
Penser faire = to consider doing, hope to do
Penser à faire = to have in mind to do
I left About nearly a year and a half ago, but I will keep your question in mind for when I write a new lesson on this topic. (To find my new site, just search for my name and French).
C
Kwiziq community member
19/11/15
Louis
Kwiziq community member
10 August 2018
1 reply
The pronoun Y: Il y a (there is), il y a (he has there) – confusion
Hello all,
I understand the basics of using Y as a pronoun but i’m confused about when to use it in certain cases. Especially when it can look like the fixed expression il y a (there is).
Please look at these examples
1: Il y a une fille – There is a girl
2: Il a une fille à Paris – He has a girl in Paris
3: Il Y a une fille – He has a girl THERE (in Paris)
1 & 3 look the same as both have « il y a », but il y a translates as « there is » in example 1 and « he has there » in example 3
How do you know when Il y a means « there is » or « he has there »
I have been told by a friend that you can’t use “il y a” for “he has there” not for sentence number 3
My question is: Why not ? Y replaces à Paris (one of the main uses of the Y pronoun) – I thought this was a simple logical rule.
My friend said “in french the sentence 3 in english it’s : il a une fille là. missing the “Y” ”
What is the rule around this?
because you can say
il a mangé à Paris > il y a mangé
but obviously in this situation, there cannot be any confusion with il y a (there is)
So my next question is now for ELLE
As above, I have been told that for Il y a une fille (he has a girl there (in Paris)) , you should in fact write
Il a une fille là
This prevents any confusion between il y a (there is) and il y a (he has there)
But for ELLE there is not confusion because « there is » is always « IL y a)
So for
Elle a un garçon à Paris
Can you write…
Elle y a un garçon – she has a boy there (in Paris)
As there is no confusion between il y a (there is) and elle y a (she has there)
Or do you still have to use là instead ?
Elle a une garçon là
I have also been told that elle y a doesnt exist, but surely the following example does.
Elle a mangé à Paris
Elle y a mangé
None of the french people i know can give me a rule or a straight answer, so if there is anyone who can answer these questions, I would be very grateful.
Best wishes,
Louis
Cécile
Kwiziq language super star
13 August 2018
13/08/18
Hi Louis,
In my opinion, you would know the difference in meaning by the context .
I do agree that you would probably say:
"Il a une fille là-bas. "(rather than là) for, "He has a girl there (in Paris)." but I think you could use, "Il Y a une fille." if the context was clear, stressing the Y when speaking.
Same thing applies to your examples with Elle.
"Elle a un garçon là-bas." or " Elle Y a un garçon."
(I would probably use 'copain' or 'petit ami' instead of garçon)
Hope this helps!