On ne se promène jamais dans la forêt.

From Lesson 66:Informal 'we' (on)·French

Questions & Answers about On ne se promène jamais dans la forêt.

The translation uses 'we', but isn't the French word for 'we' nous?
Yes, nous is the formal word for 'we'. However, in everyday spoken French, people almost always use on instead. Even though on literally translates to 'one', in this sentence it means 'we'.
Since on means 'we', why don't we use the nous verb form?
Even when on means 'we' in conversation, it is always grammatically singular. You must conjugate the verb exactly as you would for il (he) or elle (she). That is why we use se promène instead of nous promenons.
Why is there a se before the verb?
The verb here is se promener, which means 'to take a walk'. It is a reflexive verb, meaning it needs an extra pronoun (se) that matches the subject. Because on uses the 'he/she' verb forms, it takes the pronoun se.
How does the word order work with both se and ne ... jamais?
In French, a reflexive pronoun like se is permanently glued to the front of its verb. When you make the sentence negative, the negative words (ne and jamais) have to wrap around that entire chunk. So, it becomes ne [se promène] jamais.

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