Y and En
In French, y and en are short pronouns that replace longer phrases, making speech and writing more natural and concise. This guide shows when to use each one, with quick examples to drill the pattern.
Y
Use y to replace a phrase that begins with a place preposition like à, chez, dans, sur, or en — or to replace à plus a thing when it refers to a place or an abstract idea.
Examples
En
Use en to replace a phrase that begins with de (like de, du, de la, des) or to replace a noun introduced by a quantity, or sometimes to replace an expression when you want to avoid repeating it.
Examples
| French Example | English Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 🍞 J’y vais après la boulangerie.* | I’m going there after the bakery. | Place with y |
| ☕ Elle y prend toujours un café. | She always has a coffee there. | Habit at place |
| 🥖 Nous y avons acheté des croissants. | We bought croissants there. | Object with y (place) |
| 🗒️ Tu y as laissé ta liste. | You left your list there. | Reference to place |
| 🧴 Ils y vendent aussi du gel. | They also sell gel there. | Sales at place |
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Differences
Y replaces phrases introduced by place prepositions or à for things; en replaces phrases introduced by de or expressions of quantity. Think y for "there" and en for "some" to keep the distinction clear.
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Summary
Y and en streamline sentences by standing in for longer prepositional phrases: use y for places or à‑phrases and en for de‑phrases and quantities. Practice swapping them in short sentences to make the pattern second nature.
En
Examples
| French Example | English Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 🥐 J’en veux deux.* | I want two (of them). | Quantity with en |
| 🧺 Elle en a acheté une cinquantaine. | She bought about fifty of them. | Large quantity |
| 📝 Nous en avons fait la liste. | We made the list of it/them. | Partitive with list |
| 🚗 Ils en ont donné un au voisin. | They gave one to the neighbor. | Part of whole |
| 🥖 Tu en as pris du pain ? | Did you take (some) bread? | Question with en |
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Last updated: Sun Sep 14, 2025