Language/French/Grammar/Emphasizing-me,-te,-se,-nous,-vous-by-adding-a-pronoun-+-même

Emphasizing me, te, se, nous, vous by adding a pronoun + même

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In French, reflexive and benefactive pronouns (me, te, se, nous, vous) can be emphasized by adding the expression "moi-même," "toi-même," "luimême," "elle-même," "soi-même," "eux-mêmes," "elles-mêmes," or other similar expressions. This emphasis serves to reinforce the self-reliant or self-directed nature of the reflexive or benefactive action.

For example:

• "Connais-toi, toi-même." (Know thyself.)

In this sentence, the reflexive pronoun "toi" (you) is emphasized by adding "toi-même" to convey the importance of self-knowledge.

• "Elle est grande maintenant: elle s'habille elle-même." (She's a big girl now, she dresses herself.)

In this sentence, the reflexive pronoun "elle" (she) is emphasized by adding "elle-même" to emphasize her independence and self-sufficiency.

• "Puisque personne d'autre ne le fait, Suzette s'admire elle-même!" (Since no-one else does so, Suzette admires herself!)

In this sentence, the reflexive pronoun "elle" (she) is emphasized by adding "elle-même" to highlight her self-love and self-confidence.

• "De nos jours, malheureusement, il faut se soigner soi-même." (Nowadays, unfortunately, you have to be your own doctor.)

In this sentence, the reflexive pronoun "se" (yourself) is emphasized by adding "soi-même" to emphasize the necessity of taking care of oneself in the absence of outside help.

Overall, the addition of "même" to reflexive and benefactive pronouns emphasizes the self-directed or self-reliant nature of the action, and can be used to highlight independence, self-love, and self-sufficiency.

Finish this lesson and explore these related pages: Possessive determiners, Omission of the article, Plurals in cardinal numbers & Use of the definite article with names of countries, regions, départements.

Other Lessons

• Adverbs ending in —ment derived from nouns
• Active Voice and Passive Voice
• Agreement of past participle if direct object is placed before
• Adjective—adjective compounds
• Pronominal Verbs
• Direct Object Complement
• Pronominal verbs, the auxiliary “être” and the agreement of the past participle
• Use of the definite article with superlatives
• Demonstrative pronouns
• Grammatical and real number
• Past participles used as adjectives with the verb être
• Masculine and feminine forms of adjectives — A change in written and spoken French
• Comparatives and Superlatives
• Use of ce, cela, ça as neutral pronouns
• Omission of plural indefinite des after the preposition de