Je reçois la facture par courriel.

I receive the bill by email.

Breakdown of Je reçois la facture par courriel.

• je: I
• recevoir: to receive
• par: by
• le courriel: the email
• la facture: the bill

Questions & Answers about Je reçois la facture par courriel.

What does the verb recevoir mean here, and how is je reçois formed?

Recevoir means “to receive” or “to get.” In the present tense (indicative), it conjugates irregularly:

• je reçois
• tu reçois
• il/elle reçoit
• nous recevons
• vous recevez
• ils/elles reçoivent

The first‐person singular (je reçois) uses a stem with ç to keep the soft “s” sound.

Why do we say la facture instead of une facture?

Using la (the definite article) refers to a specific invoice that both speaker and listener know about (e.g. “the invoice we talked about”). Saying une facture would mean any invoice in general (“an invoice”).

Why is par used in par courriel instead of en or avec?

In French, par introduces the means or medium (“by”). You say par avion, par téléphone, par la poste, par courriel. En is used for things like en voiture, and avec (“with”) is less common for describing channels of communication.

What is courriel, and how does it differ from e-mail or email?

Courriel is the official French term (from courrier électronique). In everyday speech, many Francophones also use the English loanwords e-mail or email, but courriel is preferred in formal or written contexts.

Can I replace la facture with a pronoun, and if so, where does it go?

Yes. Replace la facture with the direct object pronoun la (feminine singular). The sentence becomes:
Je la reçois par courriel.
The pronoun la must come immediately before the verb reçois.

Is there a difference between recevoir and obtenir?

Yes. Recevoir means to receive something sent or given to you. Obtenir means to obtain or get something, usually by effort, request, or process. Example:

• Je reçois un colis. (I receive a package.)
• J’obtiens un diplôme. (I obtain a diploma through study.)

Could I say je reçois la facture via courriel?

While via is understood (it’s borrowed from English/Latin), it’s considered an Anglicism in everyday French. The preferred, standard phrase is par courriel.

Why is there no preposition before la facture in je reçois la facture?

Recevoir is a direct-transitive verb, so it takes a direct object without any preposition. You simply say recevoir quelque chose (receive something), not recevoir de quelque chose.