Breakdown of Ce vieux livret de famille ? Je m'en souviens très bien.
je
I
très
very
ce
this (before a noun)
de
of / from / any (in negative sentences) / about (concerning)
bien
well
la famille
the family
vieux
old
en
in, to
se souvenir
to remember
le livret
the booklet
Questions & Answers about Ce vieux livret de famille ? Je m'en souviens très bien.
Why do we use en here instead of a direct object pronoun like le to say "it"?
In French, the verb "to remember" is se souvenir de. Because it requires the preposition de, you cannot use a direct object pronoun like le or la. Instead, the pronoun en is used to replace de plus an inanimate object (in this case, de ce vieux livret de famille).
Why are both m' and en placed before the verb, and how do we know which goes first?
Object pronouns usually go before the conjugated verb in French. When using a reflexive pronoun (like me) along with en, the reflexive pronoun always comes first in the sentence order. Since me ends in a vowel and en starts with one, they combine and form m'en.
If I wanted to say "I remember him" instead of referring to a booklet, would I still use m'en souviens?
Generally, no. While en is perfect for replacing things and concepts, when the object of de is a specific person, French usually keeps the preposition and uses a stressed pronoun. For example, "I remember him" would be Je me souviens de lui.
What exactly is a livret de famille?
It translates to "family booklet." This is a very common official document in France given to couples upon marriage or the birth of their first child. It serves as an official civil record of the family's births, marriages, and deaths.
Just a quick refresher: why does vieux come before the noun it describes?
Most French adjectives go after the noun, but vieux (old) is a common exception. You might remember the acronym BANGS (Beauty, Age, Number, Goodness, Size), which groups the short, common adjectives that typically come before the noun.
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