Learn Hardcore French: Paul rêve de Paris ; il y pense chaque jour. - Paul dreams of Paris; he thinks about it every day.

The verb rêver is always followed by de when talking about dreaming of something. It’s a fixed construction: rêver de + noun (or + infinitive verb).

Why is there no article before Paris (e.g., de la Paris or du Paris)?

In French, most city names are proper nouns and don’t take an article. So you simply say Paris, not le Paris or la Paris.

What does the pronoun y replace in il y pense?

Here y replaces the phrase à Paris. So il y pense literally means “he thinks about it,” with it standing for Paris.

Why is y placed before the verb pense instead of after?

French clitic pronouns (like y) always come immediately before the conjugated verb in simple tenses. Hence il y pense, not il pense y.

What’s the difference between penser à and penser de?

Penser à means “to think about” or “to remember” something or someone. Penser de, by contrast, appears in opinion questions: Que penses-tu de Paris ? means “What do you think of Paris?”

Why is il used again after the semicolon instead of omitting it?

A semicolon links two independent clauses, and each clause needs its own subject. To avoid repeating Paul, we use the pronoun il. If you used a coordinating conjunction (et), you could say Paul rêve de Paris et y pense chaque jour, keeping Paul as the single subject.

Could I replace the semicolon with a period or a coordinating conjunction?

Yes. You can write: • Paul rêve de Paris. Il y pense chaque jour. (two separate sentences)
• Paul rêve de Paris et y pense chaque jour. (connected by et)
The semicolon simply signals a strong link between the two ideas without using et or ending the sentence.

What’s the nuance between chaque jour and tous les jours? Could I say il y pense tous les jours?

Both chaque jour and tous les jours mean “every day.” They’re interchangeable here. Chaque jour is a bit more formal or literary, while tous les jours sounds more conversational.