french word for "him" and "her"?

Question

i'll use an online translator and they'll come out to "il" and "elle", but when i translate them back into english they turn back into "it". is that really how you say "him" and "her"?

Answer 1

Probably the reason it translates back into "it" is because French, like most other languages, gives a gender to objects (like books, tables, etc). For instance, "the book" is translated into "le livre" (masculine pronoun) but "the mouth" is translated into "la bouche" (feminine pronoun). Every object is considered male or female. So if you use the pronoun "it" in French, it will most likely take on a masculine or feminine form, depending on the object to which you are referring.

However, when referring to actual human beings, you are correct; "he" is translated into "il" and "she" is translated into "elle" (or "lui" for either one, depending on what kind of pronoun you are using -- reflexive verbs will turn it into "lui").

And to think that English is even more complicated than French!

Answer 2

Yes and no.

French grammar has its own set of rules. French nouns have gender while English ones generally don't, so "il" and "elle" can indeed mean "it." You are right in that the same words are also used to mean "him" and "her." But depending on the sentence, those may or may not be the correct words to use. For example, to say "that belongs to him" I would say "ca appartien a lui" (sorry, I can't display special characters or accents here, so that's not the correct spelling, just the closest approximation I can give).

The correct word to use and the meaning of the word depends on the context. Also, word-to-word translations are sometimes strange because idioms are often used which do not mean literally what the actual words say. English uses idioms as well. For example, we may say that someone who is going to be in trouble will be "dead" or that their parents will "kill them," or make fun of someone's fear by calling them a "scaredy cat." Some things really do get "lost in translation."

Answer 3

don't depend too much on translators cause they can mess up sometimes, like with what you said. unless you can tell when the translator is wrong (when you're a bit more advanced), don't depend fully on it.

btw, you're right: il and elle are he and she, respectively.

Answer 4

yes those are right il for he and elle for her

Answer 5

if you tell : i gave him je lui donne
i gave her je lui donne
it's the same for boy or girl

if you tell That's her flower c'est sa fleur
that's his flower c'est sa fleur

it works with the noun which is the subject.

Answer 6

Put this in your translator...Je pense je cassse mon jambe. I'm not even French!