Breakdown of Nous nous appelons Marc et Sophie, nous sommes collègues.
être
to be
et
and
nous
we / us (object pronoun)
s'appeler
to be called
le collègue
the colleague
Questions & Answers about Nous nous appelons Marc et Sophie, nous sommes collègues.
Why are there two "nous" in "Nous nous appelons"?
The first nous is the subject meaning "we", and the second nous is a reflexive pronoun meaning "ourselves". Because s'appeler is a reflexive verb, you are literally saying "We call ourselves" instead of "Our names are".
Why is "appelons" spelled with only one 'l' here, but "m'appelle" has two?
The verb s'appeler has a spelling quirk! When the stress of the spoken word falls on the "ell" sound (like in je m'appelle), you use a double 'l'. But when the stress moves to the end of the word (like the -ons in nous nous appelons), the middle part relaxes to an "uh" sound and you use a single 'l'.
How do you pronounce the two "nous" in a row? Are the 's's silent?
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