Je vais à la gare, il m'y dépose.

Questions & Answers about Je vais à la gare, il m'y dépose.

Why are the pronouns in the order m'y and not y me?
In French, multiple pronouns placed before a verb follow a strict order. The pronoun me (which becomes m') belongs to the first group (me, te, se, nous, vous), while y comes almost at the very end, just before en. Therefore, me must always precede y.
Why does me become m' here?
The pronoun y is treated as a vowel. Just as me drops its letter 'e' before a verb starting with a vowel, it also shortens (elides) to m' when placed directly before y.
Is m' a direct or an indirect object in this sentence?
It is a direct object. The verb déposer takes a direct object because you drop someone off (déposer quelqu'un). The pronoun me can be either direct or indirect depending on the verb, but here it acts as the direct object.
I usually think of déposer as 'to deposit'. Is this the normal way to say 'drop off'?
Yes! While it does mean 'to deposit' for things like money, déposer is the standard, everyday French verb used for dropping a person off somewhere in a car or other vehicle.
What exactly is the y replacing here?
The pronoun y replaces a place introduced by the preposition à (or other location prepositions like dans or sur). In this sentence, y replaces à la gare so that it doesn't have to be repeated in the second half of the sentence.

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