Question 1

Why is me in front of the verb instead of after it?

Accepted Answer

In French, object pronouns like me (me), te (you), and the ones you are focusing on in this lesson (le, la, les) usually go directly before the verb. So instead of saying "The client looks at me," the French structure is "The client me looks at" (Le client me regarde).

Question 2

Where is the word for "at" in the French sentence?

Accepted Answer

You do not need one! The French verb regarder translates to "to look at" all by itself. English speakers often want to add a word for "at" after it, but in French, you just use regarder with the person or thing you are looking at directly attached as the object.

Question 3

How would I change this sentence to say "The client is looking at him" using the pronouns from this lesson?

Accepted Answer

You would swap me for the direct object pronoun le (him/it). Because these object pronouns always go before the verb, it becomes Le client le regarde. If the client were looking at a female, you would use la to say Le client la regarde.

Question 4

The English translation says "is looking," but isn't regarde just the regular present tense?

Accepted Answer

Yes, it is! French does not have a separate "-ing" tense for things happening right now. The simple present tense il regarde can be translated as "he looks," "he does look," or "he is looking" depending on what makes the most sense in English.

Le client me regarde.

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