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Who does elle mean? Read and repair ambiguous French pronouns

Edited by Chris Lee · Updated · About the library

Read a short interview summary, trace elle and son, then compare two clear rewrites. Practise separating grammatical agreement from the person intended.

In short

Elle can fit two women mentioned in the same passage. Son récit can mean “his account” or “her account”: son agrees with récit, not with the owner. When the reference matters, repeat the name or name the event.

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Two women talk during an interview at a table.
Lina recounts ses souvenirs d’enfance to Nora. Illustration: Atelier

An interview summary and a clarification

Qui raconte son enfance ?

Le premier résumé

Nora prépare un article sur les langues parlées en famille. Elle interroge Lina, une amie qui a grandi entre deux langues. Dans ses notes, Nora écrit : « Nora a parlé à Lina de son enfance. Elle se souvient des chansons de sa grand-mère. »

En relisant ces deux phrases, Nora hésite1. De quelle enfance parle-t-on ? Qui se souvient des chansons ? Les deux femmes ont parlé de leur famille pendant l’entretien.

Lina précise

Lina répond : « C’est moi qui ai raconté mon enfance. Ma grand-mère me chantait ces chansons. Nora m’a posé des questions, puis elle a résumé mon récit. »

Nora reprend2 alors ses notes : « Lina a raconté son enfance à Nora. Lina se souvient des chansons que sa grand-mère lui chantait. » Cette précision3 rend le résumé plus clair. Le lendemain, Lina annule leur deuxième entretien. Cette annulation4 oblige Nora à modifier son programme.

Read it in English

Nora is preparing an article about languages spoken in families. She interviews Lina, a friend who grew up with two languages. In her notes, Nora writes: “Nora spoke to Lina about her childhood. She remembers her grandmother’s songs.” Reading these two sentences again, Nora hesitates. Whose childhood is being discussed? Who remembers the songs? Both women talked about their families during the interview.

Lina replies: “I’m the one who told the story of my childhood. My grandmother used to sing those songs to me. Nora asked me questions, then she summarised my account.” Nora goes back over her notes: “Lina told Nora about her childhood. Lina remembers the songs her grandmother used to sing to her.” This clarification makes the summary clearer. The next day, Lina cancels their second interview. This cancellation makes Nora change her schedule.

How do you fix an ambiguous pronoun in French?

Choose the version that matches the facts
Meaning wantedClear French
Nora remembers her own childhood.Nora se souvient de son enfance et en parle à Lina.
Lina remembers her own childhood.Lina raconte ses souvenirs d’enfance à Nora.
Lina owns the account.Nora résume le récit de Lina.
The cancelled interview changes the plan.Cette annulation oblige Nora à modifier son programme.

The first summary leaves two candidates for elle. Lina’s clarification supplies the missing fact. Repeating Lina then makes the intended meaning clear. A nearby name is a clue, but “always choose the nearest noun” would give the reader the wrong rule.

Can agreement show what a pronoun refers to?

Karim a parlé à Sami après son entretien. Il semblait soulagé.

Karim spoke to Sami after his interview. He seemed relieved.

Both men fit il, and either could be the person interviewed. A name would settle each reference.

Entretien is masculine, so it takes son. Feminine enfance also takes son before its vowel: son enfance. Neither phrase identifies the owner’s gender. Compare Lina apprend le français. Elle le parle avec sa grand-mère: elle refers to Lina and le replaces le français. Meaning and grammar work together.

Question 1No account needed
In the first summary, who does the second elle definitely identify?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

The wording alone leaves both possible.. Both Nora and Lina fit a feminine singular pronoun; the later clarification settles the meaning.

Question 2No account needed
According to Lina’s clarification, whose grandmother sang the songs?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Lina’s grandmother.. Lina says Ma grand-mère me chantait ces chansons, describing her own childhood.

Question 3No account needed
What does son in son récit tell you?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

The possessed noun is masculine singular.. Récit controls masculine singular son. It leaves the owner’s gender open.

Question 4No account needed
What event does cette annulation name?

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

Lina cancelling the second interview.. The immediately preceding sentence explicitly says Lina cancels their second interview.

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