Complément D’Objet Direct (COD)

Let us analyze a simple sentence:

Elle lit le journal. – She reads the newspaper

In this sentence, the subject is Elle/She the verb or action the subject is performing is reading/lit which is performed on the object which is the newspaper/journal.

To understand the complement d’objet direct (COD) it is important to identify the object in a sentence. CODs are also known as direct object pronouns because what we are doing essentially is replacing the object with a pronoun.

To be specific here, a direct object is a noun, pronoun which can be a person or a thing, or clause that directly receives the action of the verb without the need for a preposition. In basic sentences, the direct object directly follows the verb, so it’s very easy to see the action expressed by the verb is performed on what.

Je visite la tour Eiffel – I visit the Eiffel Tower.

Subject – Je, Verb – Visite, Object – la tour Eiffel

Je détestes les légumes – I hate vegetables

Subject – Je, Verb – déteste, Object – les légumes

To identify a direct object, you can ask the question “qui?” or “quoi?” (who? or what?) after the verb. The answer to this question will be the direct object. For example:

• J’aime le chocolat. (I like chocolate.) – love what? – “Le chocolat”, hence it is the direct object in this sentence.
• Elle écoute de la musique. (She listens to music.) – listen to what?- “La musique” hence it is the direct object.
• Nous promenons les chiens (We walk the dogs) – walk who? – “Les chiens” hence it is the direct object.

Characteristics of Direct Objects

1. They are always used with transitive verbs.

2. Direct objects do not require a preposition to connect them to the verb. They directly follow the verb.
3. Can always be found by asking “Whom?” or “What?”

Direct Object Pronouns

Direct object pronouns are used in French to replace direct objects to avoid repeating nouns in a series of sentences. Both in French and English we replace direct objects with direct object pronouns. The verb will agree with the subject and the direct object will agree with the noun it replaces.

French direct object pronouns

Pronoun Sing.	Pronoun Sing. before vowel	English Meaning	Pronoun Plural	English Meaning
me	(m’, moi)	me	nous	us
te	(t’, toi)	you	vous	you
le	(l’)	him, it	les	them
la	(l’)	her, it	les	them

• Elle lit le journal. Elle lit le journal pendant deux heures le dimanche – She reads the newspaper. She reads the newspaper for two hours on Sundays.
• Elle lit le journal. Elle le lit pendant deux heures le dimanche – She reads the newspaper. She reads it for two hours on Sundays. 

By using the direct object pronoun we could avoid repeating the noun  “the newspaper” in the second phrase. In English, the direct pronoun appears after the verb whereas in French it appears before the verb.

• Nous promenons les chiens. Nous nourrissons les chiens. – We walk the dogs. We feed the dogs.
• Nous promenons les chiens. Nous les nourrissons. – We walk the dogs. We feed them.

As you can see, the second version sounds much more natural, in both languages.

“me” and “m'” both represent the first-person singular (masculine or before a vowel sound) direct object pronoun meaning “me” or “to me.” Similarly, “te” and “t'” represent the second-person singular (informal) direct object pronoun meaning “you” or “to you.” “Vous” represents the second-person singular or plural (formal) direct object pronoun meaning “you” or “to you,” and “nous” represents the first-person plural direct object pronoun meaning “us” or “to us.” These pronouns are used to replace the nouns that would otherwise be repeated in the sentences, making them more concise.

Pronoun	Pronoun Sing. before vowel	English Meaning	Examples
me	(m’, moi)	me	Elle me voit – She sees me. Il m’aime – He loves me.
te	(t’, toi)	you	Il t’invite – He invites you. Nous te voyons – We see you.
le	(l’)	him, it	Elle l’achète – She buys it. Il le donne – He gives it.
la	(l’)	her, it	Tu la connais – You know her. Vous l’achetez – You buy it.
nous		us	Vous nous aidez – You help us. Les profs nous félicitent – The teachers praise us.
vous		you	Il vous invite- He invites you. Elle vous déteste – She hates you.
les (m and f)		them	Nous les caressons- We caress them. Vous les regardez – You watch them.

Here are some examples of direct object pronouns in French for “me,” “m’,” “te,” “t’,” “vous,” and “nous”:

1. Tu m’as appelé hier soir. (You called me last night.)
2. Je t’ai vu au supermarché. (I saw you at the supermarket.)
3. Il te donnera les nouvelles. (He will give you the news.)
4. Elle t’a offert un cadeau. (She gave you a gift.)
5. Ils vous invitent à la fête. (They invite you to the party.)
6. Vous nous aidez toujours. (You always help us.)
7. Nous vous écoutons attentivement. (We listen to you attentively.)
8. Ils nous ont remerciés pour notre aide. (They thanked us for our help.)

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Placement of Direct Pronouns 

1. Affirmative

In normal affirmative sentences, the direct pronoun is placed before the verb.

Subject + direct pronouns + verb

• Elle donne le livre – She gives the book.
• Elle le donne – She gives it.

2. In Negation 

Subject + ne/n’ + direct pronouns + verb + pas/plus/jamais/que

• Je ne bois pas de vin – I do not drink wine.
• Je ne le bois pas- I dont drink it.

• Tu aimes le café au lait? – Do you like coffee with milk?Non, je ne l’aime pas du tout.
• Non, je ne l’aime pas du tout. – No, I do not like it at all.

• Vous regardez le dernier film de Spider Man?- Are you watching the latest Spider Man movie?
• Non, je ne le regarde pas. – No, I’m not watching it.

3. In Passe Compose

Direct object pronouns precede the auxiliary verb 

Subject + direct pronouns + auxiliary verb + verb + pas/plus/jamais/que

• Vous avez regardé le dernier film de James Bond? – Have you watched the latest James Bond movie?
• Oui, je l’ai regardé hier. – Yes, I watched it yesterday

• As-tu vu Marie? – Have you seen Marie?
• Yes, I saw her at the park. – Oui, je l’ai vu au parc.

Note: When a direct object precedes the passé composé or any other compound tense, the past participle has to agree with the direct object in number and gender.

J’ai rencontré Lucy.  (I met Lucy.)
Je l’ai rencontrée.  (I met her.)

We are adding an ‘e’ at the end of the past participle because Lucy is feminine singular. When the person or object is masculine singular, we do not make any changes.

In the case of a masculine plural, we do add an ‘s’ to the past participle in the case of a direct object pronoun:

• J’ai rencontré Martin et Lou.  (I met Martin et Lou.)
• Je les ai rencontrés.  (I met them.)

When the object pronoun representing a feminine plural group is used, it is necessary to add both an ‘e’ and an ‘s’ to be added to the past participle.

• J’ai rencontré Lucy et Marie.  (I met Lucy et Marie.)
• Je les ai rencontrées.  (I met them.)

4. Négation in Passe Compose

Direct object pronouns precede the auxiliary verb 

Subject + ne/n’ + direct pronouns + auxiliary verb + pas + verb

• Vous avez regardé le dernier film de James Bond? – Have you watched the latest James Bond movie?
• Non, je ne l’ai pas regardé. – No, I haven’t watched it.
• Tu as acheté le pain? – Did you buy the bread? 
• Non, je ne l’ai pas acheté.- No, I didn’t buy it.

Note: When a direct object precedes the passé composé or any other compound tense, the past participle has to agree with the direct object in number and gender in negation also.

• Vous avez rencontré Lucy? – Have you met Lucy?
• Non, je ne l’ai pas rencontrée. – I have not met her.
• Vous avez rencontré Martin et Lou? – Have you met Martin et Lou?
• Non, je ne les ai pas rencontrés. – I have not met them.
• Vous avez rencontré Lucy et Marie? Have you met Lucy and Marie?
• Non, je ne les ai pas rencontrées.  (I have not met them.)

5. Double Verb Constructions

We know that when there are two verbs in a sentence the first verb is conjugated based on the subjects and the second verb is in infinitive. When placing a direct object pronoun in such a sentence the direct object will come before the second verb. 

Subject + first verb + direct pronoun + second verb 

• Vous adorez faire le gâteau? Oui, Nous adorons le faire.
• Do you love baking cakes? Yes, we love making it.
• Elle peut comprendre la leçon?Oui, Elle peut la comprendre
• Does she understand the lesson? Yes she understands it.
• Elle peut t’aider? – Can she help you?
• Je dois le dire. – I have to say it

6. Imperative

The imperative tense in French serves various purposes such as expressing desires, offering advice, making requests, giving recommendations, or issuing orders. It’s important to note that the imperative applies only to the tu (singular informal), nous (we), and vous (plural or formal) verb forms.

While using direct objects in the affirmative imperative, pronouns follow the verb and are connected with hyphens:

Here are some examples:

• Mangez la salade !  (Eat the salad!)
• Mangez-la !  (Eat it!)
• Lisez la deuxième page !  (Read the second page!)
• Lisez-la !  (Read it!)

• Mange les pâtes !  (Eat the pasta!)
• Mange-les !

• Lisons le livre ensemble.  (Let’s read the book together.)
• Lisons-le !  (Let’s read it!) 

To create the negative imperative, where you instruct someone not to do something, you form it by placing ‘ne’ before the verb and ‘pas’ (or another negative adverb) after the verb.

• Ne mangez pas de salade ! (Don’t eat the salad)
• Ne la mangez pas ! (Don’t eat it)
• Ne lisez pas la deuxième page !  (Don’t read the second page.)
• Ne la lisez pas ! (Don’t read it)

Exercises:

1. Complétez avec un pronom COD

1. Vous connaissez Mark ? Oui, Je ________ connais depuis 10 ans !
2. Tu achètes les fruits? Oui, Je _______ achète.
3. Il écoute de la musique classique . Il _______ écoute sur spotify.
4. Elle lit le livre. Elle _________ emprunte à la bibliothèque.
5. Nous aimons les animaux. Nous ______ caressons et nourrissons.
6. Ils boivent le café noir. Ils ________ boivent a Starbucks.
7. Elles portent les robes. Elles _______ achètent à la boutique.
8. On étudie les mathématiques. On ________ aime.
9. Les enfants mangent les bonbons. Ils _________ mangent en bus.
10. Tu regardes le match chez John ? Non, je ________ regarde chez Emma.
11. Mike et Eric construisent une maison, ils ________ construisent en bois.
12. Nous avons du mal à danser, on peut demander Gina qu’elle  ________ aide.
13. Elliot est mon meilleur ami, je ________ attends pour aller au cinéma.
14. Je veux venir avec toi au match de foot. Tu peux _________ attends?
15. Je veux mettre la robe. Tu peux me ________ prêter?

B. Complétez avec un pronom COD (passe compose)

1. Est-ce que tu as vu le nouveau film de Vincent Cassel ? Oui, je _____ ai adoré !
2. Les enfants ont mangé tous les gâteaux. Ils ________ ont dévorés en un instant.
3. Nous avons invité Sophie et Paul à la fête. Nous _________ attendons avec impatience.
4. Est-ce que vous avez acheté les cadeaux pour eux ? Oui, nous _______ avons déjà achetés.
5. J’ai trouvé les clés de la voiture. Je ________ ai mises sur la table.
6. Elle a trouvé son chapeau. Elle _______ a perdu le lendemain.
7. Ils ont choisi les chemises bleues. Ils ______ ont trouvées très élégantes.
8. Tu as écouté les chansons de ce groupe ? Oui, je _________ ai découvertes récemment.
9. Les parents ont vu les dessins de leurs enfants. Ils _______ ont félicités pour leur talent.
10. Vous invitez les amis? Oui, Je ______ invité samedi soir.

C. Répondez aux questions, en utilisant le pronom direct qui convient :

1. Vous regardez les films au cinéma ?
2. Vous écoutez de la musique en courant?
3. Vous aimez les sports d’équipe ?
4. Vous lisez les livres de cet auteur ?
5. Vous buvez le café le matin ?
6. Vous mangez les légumes tous les jours ?
7. Vous achetez les vêtements à la mode ?
8. Vous visitez les musées pendant vos voyages ?
9. Vous pratiquez les langues étrangères ?
10. Vous collectionnez les timbres ou les pièces de monnaie ?