Learn Hardcore French: Je fais asseoir mes amis; ensuite, on s’assoit tous. - I have my friends sit; then, we all sit down.

The construction faire + infinitive is the French causative. Je fais asseoir mes amis means “I have my friends sit down / I seat my friends.” It usually conveys arranging, inviting, or ushering, not necessarily forcing. In context it’s closer to “I seat them” or “I invite them to sit” than “I force them to sit.”

Why is it Je fais asseoir mes amis and not Je fais s’asseoir mes amis?

When the person is named as a noun after the verb, you use the non‑pronominal infinitive: faire asseoir + noun → Je fais asseoir mes amis.

If you replace the noun with a pronoun before the verb, you can use:

Je les fais asseoir (very common), or
Je les fais s’asseoir (also accepted).

Position of pronouns: they go before fais → Je ne les fais pas asseoir.

Could I simply say J’assois mes amis?

Grammatically yes: asseoir quelqu’un = “to seat someone.” However, for physically seating people, everyday French prefers faire asseoir or verbs like installer. J’assois mes amis can sound a bit formal/odd in casual speech. It’s very common in figurative uses: asseoir son autorité (“to establish one’s authority”).

If I replace “mes amis” with a pronoun, what are the correct forms?

Present: Je les fais asseoir. / Je les fais s’asseoir.
Negative: Je ne les fais pas asseoir.
Past: Je les ai fait asseoir. (Note: with causative faire, the past participle fait is invariable: no -e/-s.)

How do you conjugate s’asseoir? Are both s’assoit and s’assied correct?

Yes. Two accepted patterns coexist:

Pattern 1 (with -oi-): je m’assois, tu t’assois, il/elle/on s’assoit, nous nous assoyons, vous vous assoyez, ils/elles s’assoient.
Pattern 2 (with -ie-/ -ey-): je m’assieds, tu t’assieds, il/elle/on s’assied, nous nous asseyons, vous vous asseyez, ils/elles s’asseyent.

Usage tips:

In speech, many say singular m’assois / s’assoit but plural nous nous asseyons / vous vous asseyez. Mixing is common and accepted.
In careful writing, the second set (m’assieds / nous nous asseyons) is often preferred.

Is the spelling assoir (without the first “e”) acceptable?

Yes. Since the 1990 spelling reforms, assoir / s’assoir is an accepted variant of asseoir / s’asseoir. The forms you’ll say (e.g., je m’assois, il s’assoit) don’t change. In formal writing, asseoir remains the more common choice.

Why use on instead of nous in the second clause?

In modern French, on is the default for “we” in speech. It’s idiomatic and neutral in conversation: on s’assoit. In more formal writing, you may prefer nous: Nous nous asseyons.

Is On s’assoit tous correct? Should it be Tout le monde s’assoit? What about toutes?

On s’assoit tous is perfectly natural and very common in speech.
If the group is all female, many speakers say On s’assoit toutes.
Tout le monde s’assoit is also correct and a bit more neutral/formal.
Nuance: tous/toutes emphasizes “all (of us)”; tout le monde means “everyone.”

How do you pronounce tous here—do you say the final -s?

Yes. After the verb, when tous means “all (of them/us),” you pronounce the -s: [tus] → On s’assoit tous [ɔ̃ saswa tus]. Before a noun (tous les amis), the -s is silent: [tu].

Where does tous go in the sentence? Could I say On tous s’assoit?

Place tous/toutes after the verb (and any object pronouns), before most complements:

On s’assoit tous.
On s’assoit tous à table.
On les fait tous asseoir. Do not say On tous s’assoit—that’s ungrammatical.

Is the punctuation with the semicolon and the comma after ensuite correct?

Yes. A semicolon (;) can link two closely related clauses in French. Typographically, French normally uses a (thin) space before ;, which is what you see in plain text. The comma after Ensuite is also standard. Alternatives like a period or Puis instead of Ensuite are fine: Je fais asseoir mes amis. Ensuite/Puis, on s’assoit tous.

Any pronunciation tips or liaisons in this sentence?

Je fais asseoir often has a liaison: [ʒə fɛ.z‿aswaʁ].
mes amis has liaison: [me.z‿ami].
on s’assoit: pronounce the s in s’ as [s], and assoit as [aswa].
tous here is [tus], as noted above.

How would I say it in the past? Anything tricky with agreement?

Causative: J’ai fait asseoir mes amis (never faits/faite).
Reflexive past: Ensuite, on s’est tous assis. If the group is all female, many write/say on s’est toutes assises. With nous it’s clearer: Nous nous sommes tous assis / toutes assises.

Which prepositions go with s’asseoir?

s’asseoir sur une chaise/banc (on a chair/bench)
s’asseoir dans un fauteuil/un canapé (in an armchair/on a couch)
s’asseoir à table/au premier rang (at the table/in the front row)
s’asseoir par terre (on the floor/ground)

How do I politely invite people to sit?

Common options:

Asseyez-vous, je vous en prie.
Installez-vous.
Prenez place.
Mettez-vous à l’aise. You’d use Je fais asseoir mes amis when describing what you do (e.g., “I seat my friends”), not as a direct invitation.