Y and en are two French pronouns that don’t translate very well from English. They both replace a noun or a clause in a sentence. Aside from the obvious English translations of there for y and some for en, there are tricks to knowing when to use which pronoun.

In this post we’ll examine both y and en, first individually, and then directly comparing the two in use. We’ll look at common expressions that use the two pronouns, like on y va vs on s’en va, or j’en sais rien vs j’y connais rien, but first we must familiarize ourselves with the uses of y and en on their own.

If you follow through this whole lesson, by the end you’ll feel comfortable referring to things correctly using y or en. Et maintenant, on y va ! – And now, let’s get going!

Y in French

The French pronoun y is often used with intransitive verbs (that don’t take objects) when there’s some sort of location involved. Y is also often used to refer to direct and indirect objects. In each case, y generally replaces both the noun, and a preposition that describes some direction of action from the verb. In most circumstances y is linked to the preposition à, while it’s also the pronoun of choice to replace instances of the pronoun chez.

In most cases y is translated as there, though it’s sometimes translated as it or them. Let’s see how this works in different contexts.

Y referring to a place

Y most frequently references a location or a place, translated as there. It replaces the noun as well as the preposition that describes the relation to the place, such as à (and its variants) or chez. There can be movement involved (to in English), or the location can be static (at in English).

• Tu connais Sephora? J’y achète tout mon maquillage. (y replaces à Sephora) – Do you know Sephora? I buy all my makeup there.

• J’adore New York. J’y habite. (y replaces à New York) – I love New York. I live there.

• Ils vont au Canada pour les vacances. Ils y vont par avion. (y replaces au Canada) – They are going to Canada on vacation. They are going [to] there by plane.

• J’adore les Maldives, j’y vais chaque été. (y replaces aux Maldives) – I love the Maldives, I go [to] there every summer.

• Attachez tes gants aux manches de ton manteau, ils y seront bien sécurisés comme ça. (y replaces sur les manches du manteau) – Attach your gloves to the sleeves of your jacket, they’ll be secure [on] there like that.

• Nous étions chez Maurice. On y était pendant des heures. (y replaces chez Maurice) – We were at Maurice’s house. We were there for hours.

Y as an inferred place

So far our examples have all had some clear place which was being referenced by y. In many circumstances we can just infer the location without needing to know details, with y just being adequate to indicate there.

• J’ai du retard, je n’y suis pas encore. – I’m late, I’m not there yet. (there refers to wherever I’m going)

• Regardez-bien, l’indice y est. – Look closely, the clue is there. (there refers to whatever is being looked at)

This inferred use of y is seen in a couple of very common expressions for let’s go in French: allons-y and on y va. Here the point is just to suggest getting going, without necessarily stating any specific destination.

Y as a figurative place or object

Building on the idea of implied places or destinations we saw in the last examples, y is also a good stand-in for unstated figurative goals. If there’s some implied journey towards something, whether a concrete project or a vague ambition, y can point to it. In these cases, we’re replacing the unstated preposition à + unstated goal with y, so the verb needs to be able to take à for these uses.

• Il faut que je m’y mette. (se mettre à…) – I have to get to it. – I have to get started [on it]. – I have to get cracking.

• Pendant que j’y pense… (penser à…) – While I’m thinking of it… – While it’s on my mind…

In a slightly different vein to figurative goals, we’ll also include beliefs in this section since the verb croire takes prepositions that are replaced with y: croire en and croire à both translate as to believe in (note that in this use en is a preposition, not a pronoun).

• Ma tante croit en Dieu. Elle y croit. – My aunt believes in God. She believes in Him.

• Ma cousine croit aux extraterrestres. Elle y croit. – My cousin believes in extraterrestrials. She believes in them.

If we just believe something rather than believe in something, we use the standard direct object pronouns.

• L’amour, je veux toujours y croire, mais ses fausses promesses, je ne les crois plus. – Love, I still want to believe in it, but his false promises, I don’t believe them anymore.

Y referring to a person

Unlike with en, we can replace a person with the pronoun y if the reference to that person begins with à. This only really works with a few specific verbs, such as penser à, tenir à, or s’habituer à.

• Penses-tu toujours fréquemment à ton ex ? Tu a beaucoup tenu à elle quand vous étiez ensemble. / Non, je n’y pense plus, même si j’y tiens toujours. – Do you still think regularly of your ex? You cared a lot about her when you were together. / No, I don’t think of her any more, even though I still care for her.

• T’intéresses-tu à Adam ? / Oui, je m’y intéresse beaucoup! – Are you interested in Adam? / Yes, I am very interested in him!

Keep in mind that it’s also common to simply use the stressed pronouns in these circumstances. Either option is correct.

• T’intéresses-tu à Adam ? / Oui, je m’intéresse beaucoup à lui! – Are you interested in Adam? / Yes, I am very interested in him!

Note that using y for people only really works with a few specific verbs. For most verbs that take à, we’re obliged to use the personal indirect object pronoun rather than y.

• J’ai rencontré Vanessa Paradis à Cannes, mais je ne lui ai pas parlé. – I met Vanessa Paradis in Cannes, but I didn’t talk to her. (parler à + a person cannot be replaced with y)

Y in Il y a

Il y a is the idiomatic expression for there is or there are in French. If we dissect this expression literally, the il a translates to it has, with our familiar y meaning there. Rather than read it literally as it there has, the expression needs to be taken as a whole, meaning there is or there are. Thus, il y a is just used to indicate the presence (or absence with il n’y a pas) of whatever it introduces.

• Il y a plein de bonnes choses à manger. – There are tons of great things to eat.

• Il n’y a plus de papier toilette. –  There’s no more toilet paper.

• Il n’y a pas de wifi. – There’s no wifi.

It’s important to note that il y a also has another use that’s not so related to what we’ve seen so far: it translates as ago to denote a span of time prior to the present.

• J’ai couru un semi-marathon il y a une vigntaine d’années. – I ran a half marathon around twenty years ago.

• Le dernier métro est parti il y a deux minutes. – The last metro left two minutes ago.

Since the a in il y a is a conjugation of avoir, both of these uses are among the many expressions we introduce in our post on avoir expressions.

En in French

En is a direct object pronoun that replaces a part of the sentence that is frequently (though not always) introduced by the preposition de. It often replaces multiple words, including the preposition, and can take various English translations depending on the circumstances. Let’s go through these different uses here.

En meaning Some: in place of partitive articles + noun

En references an unspecified quantity, some. This can be tricky because some is often omitted in English sentences. Some is not omitted in French sentences.

• Je mange de la tarte. J’en mange. – I eat [some] pie. I eat some.

• J’écoute de la musique. J’en écoute. – I listen to [some] music. I listen to some.

To denote some before a noun we use partitive articles, which are du, de la, de l’, and des depending on the gender and number of the noun. When using negation, regardless of the gender and number of the noun, all partitive articles become de to indicate none of or not any.

En takes the place of the partitive articles along with the noun.

• Je mange du pain. J’en mange. Je ne mange pas de pain. Je n’en mange pas. – I eat some bread. I eat some. I do not eat any bread. I don’t eat any.

• Je bois de l’eau. J’en bois. Je ne bois pas d’eau. Je n’en bois pas. – I drink [some] water. I drink some. I do not drink any water. I don’t drink any.

En meaning Of it or About it: in place of de + noun

When we’re not talking about a quantity, but still introducing a noun with the preposition de, this combination can still be replaced by the pronoun en. In this context, en translates as of it or about it.

This use is common with verbs whose use regularly takes de, similar to English verbs whose use takes about. Common examples are to talk about or to think about, which in French can become en parler and en penser.

• M. Dupont parle de son livre. Il en parle. – Mr. Dupont talks about his book. He talks about it.

• Je t’ai raconté mon idée brillante? Qu’est-ce que tu en penses ? – Did I tell you about my brilliant idea? What do you think about it?

An important exception is that en cannot be used as a pronoun to replace a person. When we refer back to people, we keep the de and instead use a stressed pronoun.

• Les femmes parlent de M. Dupont. Elles parlent de lui. – The women talk about Mr. Dupont. They talk about him.

En meaning About it or Of it: to imply De ça

En is usually used in sentences where the object of a verb could be de ça, meaning about it or of it. Many of these expressions verge on the figurative, since what ça refers to is often intentionally undefined.

Like the previous use of en meaning it, this one works with verbs that normally take the preposition de. Examples are savoir de or s’occuper de for to know about and to take care of, which become en savoir and s’en occuper for to know about it and to take care of it.

• Je m’en fous. – I don’t care [about it].

• Je n’en sais rien. – I don’t know anything about that.

• J’ai du mal à en parler. – I have trouble talking about it.

• Elle ne parlera pas de ça avec nous mais elle en parlera avec sa psy. – She won’t talk about it with us but she will [talk about it] with her therapist.

• Qui peut s’occuper de ça? / Je m’en occupe. – Who can take care of that? / I’ll take care of it.

En meaning Of them: with a quantity

When we refer to a quantity of something where we’ve previously introduced the noun, we often still include the pronoun in French. In English this is equivalent to saying of them after the quantity, though you often simply omit this preposition-pronoun combination if it’s obvious what the quantity refers to. In French we use the pronoun en.

• Ces épisodes sont géniaux, j’en ai déjà regardé cinq! – These episodes are awesome, I’ve already watched five of them! (En refers back to episodes watched.)

• Marianne a trois valises et j’en ai une. – Marianne has three suitcases and I have one [of them]. (En refers to suitcases.)

• Elle a rangé les serviettes, mais elle t’en a mise une dans ta chambre. – She put away the towels, but she put one [of them] in your room for you. (En refers to the towels.)

En meaning From there: de là

En replaces phrases of direction or movement from a specific location. It replaces the preposition de in addition to the noun of the location, and can be thought of simply as a replacement for de là. The most common French verb we see this use with is revenir de, which means to return from or to get back from.

• Il était à la bibliothèque. Il en revient maintenant. – He was at the library. He’s coming back from there now.

• Nous sommes rentrés de la conférence aujourd’hui, mais notre patron en reviendra demain. – We got home from the conference today, but our boss will get back from there tomorrow.

En is also used in the formation of the expression s’en aller, which is to leave somewhere, to get going, or to take off. This follows the same concept of leaving from somewhere, or de là.

• Elle s’en va pour de bon. – She is leaving for good.

• Si vous vous en allez, je vais me sentir seul. – If you take off, I’ll feel alone.

When used in the imperative, this expression is very rude.

• Va-t’en. – Allez-vous-en. – Get out of here. – Fuck off.

En as a preposition

The focus of this post is on en and y as pronouns, so we won’t go into too much detail here. Still, it’s important to be aware that en has a completely different grammatical use as a preposition. Context should usually be enough to keep this use distinct from en as a pronoun.

In general, the French preposition en indicates a location, a time period, a state of being, or a transformation. For a broader introduction to prepositions in general, see our post on French prepositions.

• Mon coloc part en Suède cet automne avec sa copine qui habite en Norvège. – My flatmate is going to Sweden this autumn with his girlfriend who lives in Norway. (recommended: our post on countries in French)

• En 2003, j’ai fait un semi-marathon en une heure et quarante minutes. – In 2003, I ran a half-marathon in one hour and forty minutes. (recommended: our posts on weeks, months, seasons, and telling time in French.

• Mon cerveau se sent en repos quand je parle en français. – My brain feels at rest when I speak in French.

• Le chariot de Cendrillon s’est transformé en citrouille à minuit. – Cinderella’s carriage transformed into a pumpkin at midnight.

The preposition en is also used in many common phrases like en fait (in fact) or en dedans (inside), as well as to introduce the present participle to form the present progressive, equivalent to -ing in English.

• Nous avons traversé le pont vétuste en croisant les doigts, mais notre guide y embarquait en priant. – We crossed the dilapidated bridge crossing our fingers, but our guide started walking across it praying.

• J’améliore mon français en lisant régulièrement, ainsi qu’en regardant des séries. – I improve my French by reading regularly, as well as by watching TV series.

When to use Y vs En in French

As we’ve seen so far, y and en are used in similar circumstances and sometimes even take the same translations in English. However, we’ve also seen that the two have distinct uses from each other, so they are not interchangeable. Let’s wrap up our post by using en and y side by side to compare how they’re used.

For both of these pronouns, they usually replace not only a noun but also a preposition. This preposition is the most important clue as to which one to use: if the noun is preceded by de or chez, it becomes en; if the noun is preceded by à it becomes y. It’s best to keep this rule in your head in French, rather than trying to translate it to English!

If you want to think about these rules in English, remember that de and à have different translations depending on how they’re used in French. Let’s look at the different contexts where they’re both used.

Y vs En for locations: There

When referring to locations, en generally references coming or going back from somewhere (with de), while y references going to somewhere (with à). Even though the movement often includes both a departure point and a destination, the important detail is this direction of movement indicated by these prepositions.

Let’s see this with the two quintessential expressions based on these two pronouns, both of which indicate leaving. We add the implied nouns in brackets to show that en replaces de and y replaces à.

• On s’en va [d’ici]. – We are leaving [from here]. – Let’s go [away from here].
• On y va [à notre destination]. – Let’s go [there to our destination].

Now let’s see these two pronouns in some other examples. We repeat the nouns with their respective prepositions to show which preposition+noun combinations are replaced with y or en.

• Ne va pas à cet endroit. N’y va pas. – Don’t go to that place. Don’t go [to] there.
• Je reviens de là-bas. J’en reviens. – I’m coming back from over there. I’m coming back from there.

• J’étais chez moi, elle y était aussi. Elle s’en est allée à minuit. – I was at home, and she was there too. She left [from there] at midnight.
• Elle était chez moi. Elle y était. – She was at my place. She was there.

Y vs En for things: Some, It, Them

The same general rules about à and de apply when referring to things, but the English translations are very different. De+noun still becomes en, while à+noun becomes y.

Remember that de is not only a preposition, it’s also a partitive article (along with its variants like du and des) which usually translates as some or any. De can also follow specific verbs to mean of or from.

Likewise, à follows specific verbs and can take translations such as to, of, or about. Sometimes à isn’t even translated into English, even though its use is necessary in French.

Finally, the expression il y a always indicates the presence of something and translates as there is or there are.

• Y a-t-il de la confiture? – Is there any jam?
• Je n’ai pas encore goûté à cette confiture. Je n’y ai pas goûté. – I haven’t tasted this jam yet. I haven’t tasted it. (goûter à quelque-chose – to taste something)
• Je veux mettre de la confiture sur ma tartine. Je veux en mettre. – I want to put some jam on my toast. I want to put some on. (partitive article)

• Y a-t-il des noix dans ce plat? – Are there nuts in this dish?
• Je ne mange pas de noix. Je n’en mange pas. – I don’t eat nuts. I don’t eat them. (partitive article)
• Je suis allergique aux noix. J’y suis allergique. – I’m allergic to nuts. I’m allergic to them. (allergique à quelquechose – to be allergic to something)

Y vs En for concepts: About it

Finally, some verbs can take both de and à to express different meanings, so our choice of pronoun needs to reflect the intended meaning. Again, we need to keep our focus on the French rather than the English, as the translations don’t always demonstrate the difference.

• Qu’est-ce que tu penses du gouvernement actuel ? Qu’en penses-tu ? – What do you think about the current government? What do you think about it? (penser de – to think of, to think about, to have an opinion of)
• Je pense seulement aux élections qui viennent en novembre. J’y pense à chaque fois que je vois le président. – I only think about the elections that are coming in November. I think about them every time I see the president. (penser à – to think about, to cross one’s mind)

• Que réfléchis-tu de cette proposition ? / J’en réfléchis encore. – What do you think of this proposal? / I’m still thinking about it. (réflechir de – to think of, to reflect about, to have an opinion of)
• As-tu réfléchi à cette proposition ? / Oui, j’y ai réfléchi. – Have you thought about this proposal? / Yes, I have thought about it. (réflechir à – to reflect on, to think about, to give some thought to)

When it comes to knowing, our two French verbs savoir and connaître have their own nuances, and each take a specific pronoun. Savoir is for knowing facts or skills, and takes en. Connaître is for knowing or being familiar with a person, a place, or a thing, and takes y.

• Je n’en sais rien. – I don’t know anything about it. – I have no knowlege about it.
• Je n’y connais rien. – I don’t know anything about it. – I’m not familiar with any details about it.

Conclusion

This has been a pretty in-depth look at the French pronouns y and en, really examining all the contexts where each one can be used. Both are used to replace nouns and phrases in sentences, with the choice of when to use y vs en generally coming down to whether the noun is introduced by à or de.

If you’ve gone through this whole lesson, you should have a pretty strong grasp of when to use the French y vs en. Getting used to them definitely takes some practice, but if you follow the rules we laid out here, the rich uses of y and en in French will soon become second nature.

Vas-y, tu peux le faire ! – Go ahead, you can do it!