When does a past participle agree with a direct object in French?

Only with avoir, and only when the direct object appears before the participle. That happens with the pronouns le, la, les, me, te, nous, vous, with the relative que, and with interrogative phrases: je les ai vues, la lettre que j'ai écrite, quels films as-tu vus ?

Why is it j'ai vu les filles but je les ai vues?

Because in the first sentence the object comes after the participle, so there is nothing behind it to agree with. In the second, les has moved in front and the participle can look back at it. The rule is entirely about word order.

Does en trigger agreement?

No. En replaces de plus a noun, which makes it a partitive complement rather than a direct object. J'en ai lu trois and elle en a acheté are both invariable, however feminine or plural the underlying noun may be.

What about a participle followed by an infinitive?

Agree only if the preceding object is doing the action of the infinitive: je les ai vus partir, because they were leaving. If the object is what the infinitive acts on, leave the participle flat: la chanson que j'ai entendu chanter. Fait plus an infinitive is always invariable.

Does this agreement matter if you can't hear it?

In writing, very much: it is one of the things a French reader notices immediately. In speech, most of it is inaudible, but not all. Ouvert and ouverte, écrit and écrite, mis and mise, pris and prise are all clearly different when spoken.

French grammar · Advanced

Agreement with Direct Objects in French: The Preceding Object Rule

Written by Camille Laurent, Lead French Curriculum Editor · Reviewed May 2026

With avoir, a French past participle normally stays flat: j'ai écrit les lettres. It only takes gender and number endings when the direct object has already appeared before the verb, which happens with object pronouns, with the relative que, and in questions. Indirect objects and the pronoun en never trigger it.

Les lettres que j'ai écrites sont déjà parties.

The letters I wrote have already gone.

What it is

The rule has an odd historical logic behind it. When the object follows the participle, the participle has not yet met it and stays neutral. When the object has already been mentioned, the participle can look back at it and agree, exactly as an adjective would. That is the whole rule; everything else is working out what counts as a direct object.

J'ai vu les filles, puis je les ai vues encore une fois. — I saw the girls, then I saw them again.

How to spot it

Look to the left of the participle. If a direct object is sitting there — a pronoun, a que, or an interrogative phrase — the participle agrees with it. If not, leave it alone.

Je les ai achetées ce matin. — I bought them this morning. (les = feminine plural)
la robe que tu as mise — the dress you put on (que = la robe)
Quels films as-tu vus ? — Which films did you see? (quels films precedes)
J'ai acheté les fleurs. — I bought the flowers. (object follows → no agreement)

Almost all these endings are silent. The exceptions are worth knowing because they are audible: mis and mise, fait and faite, écrit and écrite, ouvert and ouverte.

Agreement with Direct Objects Quick Reference

What triggers agreement and what does not

What comes before the verb	Example	Agreement
le / la / les	Je les ai vues.	yes
me / te / nous / vous as direct object	Elle nous a invités.	yes
the relative que	les livres que j'ai lus	yes
quel or combien de + noun	Quelles villes as-tu visitées ?	yes
the object, but after the verb	J'ai lu les livres.	no
lui / leur or any à complement	Je leur ai parlé.	no
the pronoun en	J'en ai lu trois.	no
no object at all	Nous avons beaucoup marché.	no

Common Agreement with Direct Objects Examples in French

The three ways an object gets in front of the verb, and the cases where nothing happens:

Object Pronouns

Ces chaussures ? Je les ai achetées hier.: These shoes? I bought them yesterday.
Elle nous a invités à dîner.: She invited us to dinner.
Tu l'as vue ce matin ?: Did you see her this morning?
Ils m'ont prévenue trop tard.: They warned me too late. (a woman speaking)

Me, te, nous, and vous only trigger agreement when they are direct objects. With a verb like parler they are indirect and nothing changes.

The Relative Que

les fleurs que j'ai achetées: the flowers I bought
la lettre qu'elle a écrite: the letter she wrote
les amis que nous avons rencontrés: the friends we met
la robe que tu as mise hier: the dress you wore yesterday

Que is always a direct object, which makes it the most reliable trigger in the language. Qui is a subject and never causes this agreement.

Questions

Quels films as-tu vus ?: Which films did you see?
Quelle décision ont-ils prise ?: What decision did they make?
Combien de pages as-tu écrites ?: How many pages did you write?
Laquelle as-tu choisie ?: Which one did you choose?

In a question, the interrogative phrase is displaced to the front, which puts the object before the verb and triggers agreement.

When Nothing Agrees

J'ai acheté les fleurs.: I bought the flowers.
Je leur ai téléphoné hier.: I phoned them yesterday.
Des livres ? J'en ai lu trois.: Books? I've read three of them.
Nous avons dormi jusqu'à midi.: We slept until noon.

Four different reasons: the object follows, the object is indirect, the pronoun is en, and there is no object at all.

How the Rule Actually Works

Five checks. Running them in this order will settle almost every sentence you write.

Only Avoir Raises the Question

With être the participle agrees with the subject and there is nothing to decide. This rule concerns avoir alone, which is why it is worth identifying the auxiliary before anything else.

Elle est venue, et je l'ai vue.

She came, and I saw her.

être → subject. avoir → preceding object.

The Object Has to Be Direct

A direct object answers who or what without a preposition. If the verb needs à or de before the person, the complement is indirect and the participle stays flat however early it appears.

Je lui ai écrit, et je l'ai appelée.

I wrote to her, and I called her.

No preposition → direct → agreement.

The Object Has to Come First

French word order normally puts the object after the verb, so agreement is the exception rather than the rule. Only three things move it forward: an object pronoun, the relative que, and an interrogative phrase.

J'ai lu ces lettres. Ces lettres, je les ai lues.

I read those letters. Those letters, I read them.

Object first → agree. Object second → don't.

En Is Not a Direct Object

En stands for a quantity taken out of a larger group, and grammatically it derives from de. That makes it a partitive complement rather than a direct object, so it leaves the participle untouched.

Des pommes ? J'en ai mangé deux.

Apples? I ate two of them.

en → never any agreement.

The Agreement Is Adjectival

Once triggered, the participle adds the same endings as an adjective: -e for feminine, -s for plural, -es for both. Irregular participles follow their own written shape: mis becomes mise, pris becomes prise.

les décisions qu'ils ont prises

the decisions they made

-e, -s, -es, like any adjective.

Common Mistakes with Agreement with Direct Objects

Incorrect: Ta lettre ? Je l'ai reçu hier. — Your letter? I got it yesterday.

Correct: Ta lettre ? Je l'ai reçue hier. — Your letter? I got it yesterday.

L' stands for la lettre, a feminine direct object placed before the verb, so the participle takes an e. The apostrophe hides the gender, which is why this slip is so easy.

Incorrect: Les livres que j'ai lu étaient longs. — The books I read were long.

Correct: Les livres que j'ai lus étaient longs. — The books I read were long.

Que refers back to les livres and is the direct object of lire. Because it comes before the verb, the participle agrees: lus.

Incorrect: Je leur ai téléphonés hier soir. — I phoned them last night.

Correct: Je leur ai téléphoné hier soir. — I phoned them last night.

Téléphoner à quelqu'un takes an indirect object, so leur cannot trigger agreement. Only direct objects can, whatever their position.

Incorrect: Des pommes ? J'en ai achetées trois. — Apples? I bought three of them.

Correct: Des pommes ? J'en ai acheté trois. — Apples? I bought three of them.

En is a partitive pronoun standing in for de plus a noun, not a direct object, so the participle stays flat even though en comes first.

The Hard Cases

Three areas where the basic rule needs extra care, and where even careful writers hesitate.

A participle followed by an infinitive

The participle agrees only if the preceding object is the one performing the infinitive's action. If the object is what the infinitive acts upon, there is no agreement.

Je les ai vus partir.: I saw them leave. (they were leaving)
la chanson que j'ai entendu chanter: the song I heard sung (the song wasn't singing)
les musiciens que j'ai entendus jouer: the musicians I heard playing
les travaux que j'ai fait faire: the work I had done

Fait followed by an infinitive is always invariable, which is one fewer decision to make.

Impersonal and adverbial objects

Some nouns look like direct objects but function as measurements of time, weight, or price. They do not trigger agreement, and neither does the impersonal il.

la chaleur qu'il a fait cet été: the heat there was this summer
les dix euros que ça m'a coûté: the ten euros it cost me
les efforts qu'il a fallu pour y arriver: the effort it took to get there

The test is whether the noun answers what, or how much. How much is adverbial, and adverbial complements never cause agreement.

The audible agreements

Most of these endings are silent, so they matter mainly in writing. A handful change the pronunciation, and getting those wrong is noticeable in speech.

la porte que j'ai ouverte: the door I opened
la lettre que j'ai écrite: the letter I wrote
les fleurs qu'il m'a offertes: the flowers he gave me
la décision qu'elle a prise: the decision she made

Ouvert, écrit, offert, mis, pris, and fait all end in a consonant that becomes audible once the feminine e is added.

Agreement with Direct Objects FAQs

When does a past participle agree with a direct object in French?: Only with avoir, and only when the direct object appears before the participle. That happens with the pronouns le, la, les, me, te, nous, vous, with the relative que, and with interrogative phrases: je les ai vues, la lettre que j'ai écrite, quels films as-tu vus ?
Why is it j'ai vu les filles but je les ai vues?: Because in the first sentence the object comes after the participle, so there is nothing behind it to agree with. In the second, les has moved in front and the participle can look back at it. The rule is entirely about word order.
Does en trigger agreement?: No. En replaces de plus a noun, which makes it a partitive complement rather than a direct object. J'en ai lu trois and elle en a acheté are both invariable, however feminine or plural the underlying noun may be.
What about a participle followed by an infinitive?: Agree only if the preceding object is doing the action of the infinitive: je les ai vus partir, because they were leaving. If the object is what the infinitive acts on, leave the participle flat: la chanson que j'ai entendu chanter. Fait plus an infinitive is always invariable.
Does this agreement matter if you can't hear it?: In writing, very much: it is one of the things a French reader notices immediately. In speech, most of it is inaudible, but not all. Ouvert and ouverte, écrit and écrite, mis and mise, pris and prise are all clearly different when spoken.