What these pronouns do
Indefinite pronouns stand for people or things you don't identify exactly: someone, something, everyone, some, several, anyone. They replace a whole noun phrase and therefore stand alone – unlike chaque or quelques, which always need a noun beside them.
First examples
Quelqu'un a laissé un message.
Someone left a message.
J'ai quelque chose à te dire.
I have something to tell you.
Tout le monde est déjà parti.
Everyone has already left.
People and things
The most important indefinite pronouns come in pairs: one for people, one for things.
The pairs
| Person | Thing | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| quelqu'un | quelque chose | someone / something |
| personne | rien | nobody / nothing (with ne) |
| tout le monde | tout | everybody / everything |
| quelqu'un d'autre | autre chose | someone else / something else |
person - thing - meaning
tout le monde, personne, quelqu'un and chacun take a singular verb, just like English everyone is: Tout le monde est venu. – not Tout le monde sont venus.
In a sentence
Personne n'a compris la question.
Nobody understood the question.
Il n'a rien dit pendant la réunion.
He said nothing during the meeting.
J'ai tout compris, merci.
I understood everything, thanks.
With an adjective or an infinitive
English puts the adjective straight after the pronoun: someone nice, nothing new. French puts a de in between after quelqu'un, quelque chose, personne and rien, and the adjective always stays masculine singular, even when a woman is meant. Before a vowel, de becomes d'.
The pattern
Pronoun + de + adjective
Je cherche quelqu'un de compétent pour ce poste.
I'm looking for someone competent for this position.
Il y a quelque chose d'étrange dans cette histoire.
There is something strange about this story.
Rien de grave, rassure-toi.
Nothing serious, don't worry.
When an infinitive follows instead of an adjective, the linker is à: quelque chose à boire, rien à faire, quelqu'un à qui parler.
Pronoun + à + infinitive
Vous voulez quelque chose à boire ?
Would you like something to drink?
Je n'ai rien à faire ce soir.
I have nothing to do tonight.
Quantities - certains, plusieurs, quelques-uns
These pronouns pick out part of a group. Unlike tout le monde, they take a plural verb. When the group has already been mentioned and the pronoun is the object, en goes in front of the verb – English has no equivalent of "of them" here: J'en connais certains.
The main forms
| Pronoun | Meaning | Form |
|---|---|---|
| certains / certaines | some, certain ones | masc. / fem. |
| plusieurs | several | invariable |
| quelques-uns / quelques-unes | a few | masc. / fem. |
| d'autres | others | invariable |
| la plupart | most | invariable |
pronoun - meaning - form
Quantities in a sentence
Certains aiment le calme, d'autres préfèrent la ville.
Some like the quiet, others prefer the city.
Il m'a posé plusieurs questions, j'en ai noté quelques-unes.
He asked me several questions; I noted down a few of them.
La plupart des étudiants ont réussi l'examen.
Most of the students passed the exam.
chaque or chacun?
chaque is a determiner and needs a noun: chaque étudiant. chacun and chacune are pronouns and stand alone, with or without a complement: chacun de mes amis, chacun d'entre nous. Both are singular.
chaque and chacun in a sentence
Chaque étudiant reçoit un badge.
Each student gets a badge.
Je le vois chaque semaine.
I see him every week.
Chacun reçoit un badge à l'entrée.
Everyone gets a badge at the entrance.
Chacune d'entre elles a donné son avis.
Each one of them gave her opinion.
n'importe - no matter who, no matter what
n'importe combines with a question word and means no matter who, no matter what, no matter which. The series is regular and very common in everyday French. It is not the English any of questions and negatives: Did anyone call? is Est-ce que quelqu'un a appelé ?.
The series
n'importe qui
anyone at all
n'importe quoi
anything at all; as an exclamation, nonsense
n'importe quel + noun
any ... at all
n'importe lequel
any one (of a selection)
n'importe où
anywhere at all
n'importe quand
any time at all
n'importe comment
any old way; carelessly
n'importe in everyday French
N'importe qui peut apprendre à cuisiner.
Anyone can learn to cook.
Tu dis n'importe quoi !
You're talking nonsense!
Prends une chaise, n'importe laquelle.
Take a chair, any one.
Formal forms - quiconque and autrui
quiconque (whoever) and autrui (other people) appear in legal texts, proverbs and polished prose. You need to recognise them, not use them yourself. In everyday French people say celui qui and les autres instead.
Formal examples
Quiconque entre ici doit montrer son badge.
Whoever comes in here must show their badge.
Il faut respecter la liberté d'autrui.
One must respect other people's freedom.
