What is the difference between a direct and an indirect object in French?

A direct object follows the verb with no preposition (je vois Marc → je le vois); an indirect object is introduced by à (je parle à Marc → je lui parle). The distinction shows up only in the third person, where you must choose between le, la, les and lui, leur.

How do I know whether to use le or lui?

Test the verb in French. If you can say the verb plus a person with nothing in between — attendre quelqu'un, écouter quelqu'un — use le or la. If the verb needs à — téléphoner à quelqu'un, répondre à quelqu'un — use lui.

Does lui mean to him or to her?

Both. The indirect set makes no gender distinction, so je lui ai parlé can mean I spoke to him or I spoke to her, and only the context tells you which. The plural leur is likewise genderless.

Why does the past participle change with les but not with leur?

Because agreement with a preceding object applies to direct objects only. Je les ai invitées agrees with a feminine plural direct object; je leur ai écrit leaves the participle bare because leur is indirect.

Which French verbs catch English speakers out here?

Attendre, chercher, écouter, regarder and payer are direct in French despite the English preposition. Téléphoner à, obéir à, ressembler à, plaire à, répondre à and manquer à are indirect despite English having none. Those two lists are worth memorising.

French grammar · Intermediate

Direct vs. Indirect Objects in French: Le and La against Lui and Leur

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

A direct object is what the verb acts on with no preposition; an indirect object is introduced by à. The distinction only becomes visible in the third person, where a direct object gives le, la or les and an indirect object gives lui or leur — and where French and English disagree about which verbs take which.

Je le vois tous les jours, mais je lui parle rarement.

I see him every day, but I rarely speak to him.

What it is

French sorts objects by whether a preposition stands between them and the verb. Je vois Marc has no preposition, so Marc is a direct object and becomes le. Je parle à Marc has à, so Marc is an indirect object and becomes lui. The English translation is no guide at all, because English often hides the preposition or omits it altogether.

J'attends Paul, donc je l'attends. Je téléphone à Paul, donc je lui téléphone. — I'm waiting for Paul, so I'm waiting for him. I'm phoning Paul, so I'm phoning him.

How to spot it

Ask the question in French, not in English. Voir qui ? gives a direct object. Parler à qui ? gives an indirect one. If the French verb needs à before a person, the pronoun is lui or leur.

Je la connais bien. — I know her well. (direct)
Je lui ai répondu. — I answered him. (indirect: répondre à)
Il les écoute. — He's listening to them. (direct: écouter)
Il leur obéit. — He obeys them. (indirect: obéir à)

Me, te, nous and vous are identical in both roles, so the distinction is invisible for four of the six persons. Only the third person forces you to decide.

Direct vs. Indirect Objects Quick Reference

The two sets of object pronouns

Person	Direct	Indirect
me	me / m'	me / m'
you (singular)	te / t'	te / t'
him, it	le / l'	lui
her, it	la / l'	lui
us	nous	nous
you (plural)	vous	vous
them	les	leur

Common Direct vs. Indirect Objects Examples in French

The same people, replaced two different ways depending on the verb:

Direct Objects: Le, La, Les

Ce film ? Je l'ai vu deux fois.: That film? I've seen it twice.
Mes cousines ? Je les invite toujours.: My cousins? I always invite them.
Il m'attend devant la gare.: He's waiting for me outside the station.
Tu la cherches depuis une heure.: You've been looking for her for an hour.

Attendre, chercher, écouter, regarder and payer all take direct objects in French, even though English adds for, to or at.

Indirect Objects: Lui, Leur

Je lui ai envoyé un message ce matin.: I sent her a message this morning.
Nous leur avons expliqué la situation.: We explained the situation to them.
Elle lui ressemble beaucoup.: She looks a lot like him.
Ce genre de musique ne leur plaît pas.: They don't like that kind of music.

Lui covers both him and her, which surprises learners who expect a feminine form. Only the plural leur has no gender either.

Verbs With Both Kinds of Object

Je donne le livre à Julie. — Je le lui donne.: I give the book to Julie. — I give it to her.
Il a offert des fleurs à sa mère. — Il lui en a offert.: He gave his mother flowers. — He gave her some.
Elle nous a montré ses photos.: She showed us her photos.
Tu leur as dit la vérité ?: Did you tell them the truth?

Donner, offrir, dire, montrer, envoyer, prêter and rendre all take a thing directly and a person with à.

Where Agreement Shows the Difference

Les lettres ? Je les ai écrites hier.: The letters? I wrote them yesterday.
À ses parents ? Je leur ai écrit hier.: To his parents? I wrote to them yesterday.
Ma valise ? Je l'ai perdue.: My suitcase? I lost it.
Elle nous a vus dans la rue.: She saw us in the street.

A preceding direct object makes the past participle agree. An indirect object never does, which is a reliable way of telling which one you have.

How the Distinction Works in Practice

Five facts, of which the fourth explains most of the mistakes English speakers make.

The Preposition Is the Whole Test

If the French verb reaches its complement with no preposition, that complement is direct. If it needs à, it is indirect. Nothing about the meaning matters: it is purely about what the verb requires.

Je regarde les enfants et je leur souris.

I'm watching the children and smiling at them.

No à → le, la, les. À → lui, leur.

Lui and Leur Have No Gender

The direct set distinguishes le from la; the indirect set does not. Lui means to him and to her alike, and leur means to them for any group. Context does the disambiguating.

J'ai téléphoné à ma sœur : je lui ai parlé une heure.

I rang my sister: I talked to her for an hour.

lui = to him or to her.

Only Direct Objects Trigger Participle Agreement

In a compound tense, a direct object pronoun in front of the verb makes the participle agree: je les ai vues. An indirect object leaves it untouched: je leur ai parlé. This is the most useful practical consequence of the distinction.

Ces photos, je les ai prises en Bretagne.

Those photos, I took them in Brittany.

les ai prises, but leur ai parlé.

The Two Languages Disagree About Several Verbs

English says listen to, wait for, look at, and those verbs are direct in French. English says phone, obey, resemble with no preposition, and those are indirect in French. Translating the English preposition is exactly the wrong strategy.

J'écoute la radio et j'obéis aux règles.

I listen to the radio and I obey the rules.

écouter qqch, obéir à qqch.

Things Take Y, Not Lui

Lui and leur are only for people. If the à complement is a thing, the pronoun is y: je pense à mon travail becomes j'y pense, never je lui pense.

Cette question ? Je vais y réfléchir.

That question? I'll think about it.

Person → lui, thing → y.

Common Mistakes with Direct vs. Indirect Objects

Incorrect: Je lui écoute quand il parle. — I listen to him when he speaks.

Correct: Je l'écoute quand il parle. — I listen to him when he speaks.

Écouter takes a direct object in French. The to in English listen to has no counterpart, so the pronoun is le or la, not lui.

Incorrect: Je l'ai téléphoné hier soir. — I phoned him last night.

Correct: Je lui ai téléphoné hier soir. — I phoned him last night.

Téléphoner is built with à, so its person complement is indirect. English phone somebody has no preposition, which is why this one is so persistent.

Incorrect: Les livres que je leur ai achetés sont arrivés. — The books I bought him have arrived.

Correct: Les livres que je lui ai achetés sont arrivés. — The books I bought him have arrived.

Leur is plural. For a single person the indirect pronoun is lui, whether the person is male or female. Note also that leur as a pronoun never takes an s.

Incorrect: Cette idée ? Je lui pense souvent. — That idea? I think about it often.

Correct: Cette idée ? J'y pense souvent. — That idea? I think about it often.

Lui and leur are reserved for people. When the à complement is a thing or an idea, the pronoun is the adverbial y.

The Verbs Worth Learning by Heart

Three lists that between them account for most of the errors in this area.

Direct in French, prepositional in English

These verbs take a plain direct object in French. The English preposition has no French equivalent and must not be translated.

J'attends le bus depuis dix minutes.: I've been waiting for the bus for ten minutes.
Elle cherche ses clés.: She's looking for her keys.
Nous écoutons le professeur.: We're listening to the teacher.
Il regarde la télévision.: He's watching television.

Add payer and demander: on paie ses courses, and on demande quelque chose à quelqu'un.

Indirect in French, direct in English

These verbs require à in French even though English joins them straight to their object, so the pronoun has to be lui or leur.

Je téléphone à mes parents chaque dimanche.: I phone my parents every Sunday.
Cet enfant ressemble à son père.: That child looks like his father.
Ce plat plaît à tout le monde.: Everybody likes that dish.
Elle a désobéi à sa mère.: She disobeyed her mother.

Also convenir à, manquer à, nuire à, pardonner à and répondre à. Il me manque means I miss him, with the roles reversed.

Verbs with a person and a thing

A large group takes the thing directly and the person with à. When both become pronouns, the thing comes first: je le lui donne.

Il a prêté sa voiture à son frère. — Il la lui a prêtée.: He lent his brother his car. — He lent it to him.
Elle m'a dit la vérité. — Elle me l'a dite.: She told me the truth. — She told it to me.
J'ai demandé à Marie de venir.: I asked Marie to come.

Demander, dire, permettre, promettre and conseiller all take à before the person and de before a following infinitive.

Direct vs. Indirect Objects FAQs

What is the difference between a direct and an indirect object in French?: A direct object follows the verb with no preposition (je vois Marc → je le vois); an indirect object is introduced by à (je parle à Marc → je lui parle). The distinction shows up only in the third person, where you must choose between le, la, les and lui, leur.
How do I know whether to use le or lui?: Test the verb in French. If you can say the verb plus a person with nothing in between — attendre quelqu'un, écouter quelqu'un — use le or la. If the verb needs à — téléphoner à quelqu'un, répondre à quelqu'un — use lui.
Does lui mean to him or to her?: Both. The indirect set makes no gender distinction, so je lui ai parlé can mean I spoke to him or I spoke to her, and only the context tells you which. The plural leur is likewise genderless.
Why does the past participle change with les but not with leur?: Because agreement with a preceding object applies to direct objects only. Je les ai invitées agrees with a feminine plural direct object; je leur ai écrit leaves the participle bare because leur is indirect.
Which French verbs catch English speakers out here?: Attendre, chercher, écouter, regarder and payer are direct in French despite the English preposition. Téléphoner à, obéir à, ressembler à, plaire à, répondre à and manquer à are indirect despite English having none. Those two lists are worth memorising.