Question 1

Why is the pronoun order nous les and not les nous?

Accepted Answer

When you have two object pronouns before a verb in French, there is a strict order. Pronouns representing "me," "you," or "us" (me, te, nous, vous) always come before the pronouns for "it" or "them" (le, la, les). Therefore, the indirect object "to us" (nous) must go before the direct object "them" (les).

Question 2

Doesn't confier mean "to confide"? Why is it translated as "entrusts"?

Accepted Answer

Confier does mean "to confide" when talking about a secret, but it also frequently means "to entrust" someone with an object or a responsibility. The full structure is confier [quelque chose] à [quelqu'un] (to entrust [something] to [someone]).

Question 3

Is les acting as "the" or "them" in this sentence?

Accepted Answer

Here, les is a direct object pronoun meaning "them," and it refers back to ces choses (these things). You can tell it's a pronoun because it is placed right in front of the verb confie, whereas the article les ("the") would be placed in front of a noun.

Question 4

Since les is plural, why doesn't the verb confie end in -ent?

Accepted Answer

A verb always agrees with its subject, never with the object pronouns sitting in front of it. The subject of the second clause is il (he), so the verb takes the standard singular ending for an -er verb, which is -e.

Ces choses sont fragiles, il nous les confie.

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