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Nous sommes reconnaissants, et j'espère que vous l'êtes aussi.

Nous sommes reconnaissants, et j'espère que vous l'êtes aussi.
We are grateful, and I hope that you are too.
From Lesson 310:The neuter object pronoun (le)·French

Questions & Answers about Nous sommes reconnaissants, et j'espère que vous l'êtes aussi.

What does the l' stand for in vous l'êtes aussi?
The l' is the neuter pronoun le. It replaces the adjective reconnaissants (grateful). While in English we can just say "you are too" and drop the adjective, French requires a pronoun to stand in for the adjective or state of being that was just mentioned.
Why isn't it vous les êtes, since it replaces the plural adjective reconnaissants?
When the pronoun le is used as a neuter pronoun to replace an adjective, a verb infinitive, or an entire idea, it is invariable. This means it never changes to la or les, even if the adjective it replaces is feminine or plural.
Could I just say "et j'espère que vous êtes aussi" without the l'?
No, that would sound unfinished to a French speaker. If you just say vous êtes aussi (literally "you are also"), they will wait for you to say what you are. The pronoun le (contracted to l' here) acts as the mandatory placeholder.
I thought verbs expressing emotions trigger the subjunctive. Why does j'espère que take the indicative vous l'êtes?
Good catch! Even though hoping involves emotion, the verb espérer in the affirmative expresses a strong expectation or likelihood, so it is followed by the indicative mood. It generally only takes the subjunctive in negative statements or inverted questions.

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