Learn Hardcore French: Le téléphone sonne, mais personne ne répond. - The phone is ringing, but nobody is answering.

Because personne itself carries the negation (“nobody”). With negative pronouns like personne and rien, you use ne … personne / ne … rien without adding pas.

Examples: Personne ne vient.; Rien ne se passe. Adding pas would be redundant and incorrect in standard French.

What is personne here, and how does the verb agree?

Here personne is an indefinite pronoun meaning “nobody.” It is grammatically singular, so the verb is third‑person singular: personne ne répond (not “répondent”).
For agreement with adjectives or past participles, the default is masculine singular, but you can make natural‑gender agreement if the context is clearly known:

Default: Personne n’est venu.
If you know they were all women: Personne n’est venue.

Can I drop the ne in everyday speech (e.g., “personne répond”)?

Yes, in casual spoken French many speakers drop ne: … mais personne répond.
In careful or written French, keep ne. Without ne, written French risks ambiguity because personne can also be the noun “person.” Context usually clarifies this in speech.

How does ne … personne behave when the pronoun isn’t the subject or when tenses change?

As subject: Personne ne
- verb (with ne before the verb/auxiliary)
  - Personne n’a répondu.
  - Personne ne répondra.
As object/complement: ne before the verb, personne after it
- Direct object: Je n’ai vu personne.
- Indirect with à: Il ne parle à personne.
Pronouns: with people, keep à personne (don’t replace with y); with things, you can use y for “à + thing”: Personne n’y répond.

Why does French use the simple present here instead of a progressive form like “is ringing/is answering”?

French has no separate progressive tense. The simple present covers both simple and ongoing actions, so Le téléphone sonne naturally means “The phone is ringing.” You can say être en train de to emphasize the ongoing nature, but it’s unnecessary here.

What’s the difference between sonner, téléphoner, and appeler?

sonner: the device or bell rings. Le téléphone sonne.
téléphoner (à quelqu’un): to phone someone. Elle téléphone à Paul.
appeler (quelqu’un): to call someone. Elle appelle Paul. So a person appelle/téléphone, and as a result the phone sonne.

Is répondre transitive? Do I need à?

By itself, répondre can stand intransitively (“to answer/reply”). If you specify who or what you answer, use à:

répondre à quelqu’un → pronouns: lui/leur répondre
répondre à quelque chose → pronoun: y répondre Do not use direct-object pronouns with répondre: it’s Je lui ai répondu, not “Je l’ai répondu.”

What’s the most idiomatic way to say “answer the phone”?

Use décrocher (le téléphone).

Le téléphone sonne, mais personne ne décroche.
You can also hear répondre au téléphone, but décrocher is the common verb for picking up. Raccrocher means “to hang up.”

Is the comma before mais correct in French?

Yes. French typically places a comma before mais when it links two clauses: …, mais …
You could also use a semicolon or a period: Le téléphone sonne; personne ne répond.

Could I use pourtant or cependant instead of mais?

Yes, but they behave as adverbs of contrast, not conjunctions. They usually start a new clause with punctuation:

Le téléphone sonne; pourtant, personne ne répond.
Le téléphone sonne; cependant, personne ne répond. Mais directly links the two clauses and is the simplest choice here.

Is “mais ne répond personne” ever correct?

No. With the negative subject pronoun, the order is fixed: Personne ne + verb.
Correct options:

… mais personne ne répond.
… et personne ne répond. (less contrastive than mais)

Any pronunciation tips for this sentence?

téléphone: the é sounds like “ay”; final -e is a weak vowel and often very light.
sonne: short open “o” [ɔ]; double n keeps it open: [sɔn].
personne: [pɛʁ-sɔn]; don’t read it like English “person.”
répond: final -d is silent; nasal “on”
ne often reduces to a very light schwa [nə] in careful speech and is frequently dropped in casual speech.

Why is it Le téléphone (with the article)? Could I say Mon téléphone or use no article?

French normally requires an article with common nouns. Le téléphone refers to “the phone” in the situation (like the one in the room).

If it’s your phone: Mon téléphone sonne.
You can’t omit the article as English sometimes does; Téléphone sonne is incorrect.

How would I say this in the past or future?

Past (completed): Le téléphone a sonné, mais personne n’a répondu.
Past (ongoing background): Le téléphone sonnait, mais personne ne répondait.
Future: Le téléphone sonnera, mais personne ne répondra.
Near future: Le téléphone va sonner, mais personne ne va répondre.

Can I replace personne with aucun?

Sometimes, but the usage differs:

For people, use personne by default.
If you’re talking about a specific set of people, you can say Aucun d’eux ne répond.
Aucun ne répond is more common with things.
Aucune personne ne répond is grammatically possible but sounds heavy; prefer Personne ne répond.