Pronouns: Usage of 'on' — French Grammar

The pronoun is a versatile subject pronoun in French. Regardless of its meaning in a specific sentence, it is grammatically treated as a third-person singular subject. This means it always triggers the same verb conjugation as (he) or (she).

Informal Equivalent of "We"

In modern spoken French and informal writing, almost exclusively replaces to mean "we". While is still used in formal contexts, is the standard for everyday conversation.

When replaces , the possessive adjectives must correspond to the meaning "our". Therefore, you use (singular object) and (plural objects).

On va visiter nos parents.
We are going to visit our parents.
On a vendu notre maison.
We sold our house.

Although the verb remains singular, adjectives and past participles related to (meaning "we") often take plural agreement in writing to reflect the actual group of people being discussed.

On est fatigués.
We are tired.
On est arrivées en retard.
We (group of women) arrived late.

General Statements (One, People, Everyone)

is used to express general truths, rules, or habits where the subject is indefinite. This corresponds to the English "one", "people", "they", or the general "you".

In this context, the possessive adjectives follow the third-person singular pattern: , , and .

Ici, on parle français.
French is spoken here. (People speak French here.)
On doit écouter son professeur.
One must listen to one's teacher.
On ne sait jamais ce qui peut arriver.
You never know what might happen.

Unspecified Subject (Someone)

is frequently used when the speaker does not know exactly who performed an action, or when the identity of the person is irrelevant. This usage often translates to the passive voice in English or "someone".

On frappe à la porte.
Someone is knocking at the door.
On m'a dit que tu étais malade.
I was told that you were sick. (Someone told me...)
On a volé mon téléphone !
My phone was stolen! (Someone stole my phone!)

Euphonic Use: L'on

In literature or very formal speech, you may encounter instead of . The does not change the meaning; it is added purely for euphony (to make the sentence sound better). This usually occurs after words ending in a vowel sound, such as , , , , , or , to avoid a clash of vowels.

Si l'on considère les faits...
If one considers the facts...
C'est ce que l'on dit.
That is what people say.

In the course

Sentences from Lingora’s French course

23 of the course's 500 sentences use this, the first in lesson 7. A few of them, with the words “Pronouns: Usage of 'on'” is about in bold:

Oui. On mange chinois ?
Yes. Let's eat Chinese food.
Lesson 127

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