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Questions & Answers about Nous nous souvenons de ce pont, tandis que Marie ne s’en souvient jamais.
Why are there two instances of nous in Nous nous souvenons?
French pronominal verbs use a subject pronoun and a reflexive/clitic pronoun. The first nous is the subject (we), and the second nous marks the verb as pronominal. It doesn’t literally mean “ourselves” here; it’s just required by the verb se souvenir.
Why is it se souvenir de and not just se souvenir something?
Se souvenir normally takes de before a noun or pronoun: se souvenir de quelque chose / de quelqu’un. Examples:
- Je me souviens de ce pont.
- Elle ne se souvient jamais de lui. With a clause, you say se souvenir que: Je me souviens que tu étais là. You can also use an infinitive: Je me souviens avoir visité ce pont.
What does en stand for in Marie ne s’en souvient jamais?
En replaces a phrase introduced by de—here, it stands for de ce pont. So Marie ne s’en souvient jamais = “Marie never remembers it.” In French, en must come before the verb (and after the reflexive pronoun): se + en + verb.
Do I have to use en, or can I just repeat de ce pont?
You can say either:
- Marie ne s’en souvient jamais. (more natural, avoids repetition)
- Marie ne se souvient jamais de ce pont. (also correct) Use en when the de-phrase is already known from context.
How does word order work with negation and these pronouns?
In simple tenses: ne + reflexive (me/te/se/nous/vous) + en + verb + pas/jamais.
- Marie ne s’en souvient jamais. In compound tenses: ne + reflexive + en + auxiliary + pas/jamais + past participle.
- Marie ne s’en est jamais souvenu.
Why is it s’en and not se en?
Elision: se becomes s’ before a vowel or mute h. Since en starts with a vowel, you must write s’en and pronounce it as one unit.
How is se souvenir conjugated in the present? It looks irregular.
It’s like venir/tenir:
- je me souviens
- tu te souviens
- il/elle se souvient
- nous nous souvenons
- vous vous souvenez
- ils/elles se souviennent
Can I use se rappeler instead of se souvenir?
Yes, but the grammar changes:
- Se rappeler takes a direct object (no de), so you cannot use en with it.
- Your sentence becomes: Nous nous rappelons ce pont, tandis que Marie ne se le rappelle jamais. (Here le replaces ce pont.)
What’s the nuance of tandis que? Could I use alors que or pendant que?
- Tandis que and alors que both often mean “whereas,” marking contrast; they’re largely interchangeable here.
- Pendant que means “while” in a purely temporal sense (simultaneity), not contrast. In this sentence, contrast is intended, so tandis que/alors que fit better.
Why jamais instead of pas? How does jamais work?
Ne … jamais means “never” (not ever). Compare:
- ne … pas = not
- ne … jamais = never In questions or certain expressions, jamais can mean “ever,” but in your sentence it’s the negative “never.”
Can the ne be dropped in speech?
Yes, in informal spoken French, ne is often omitted: Marie s’en souvient jamais. In writing and careful speech, keep ne: Marie ne s’en souvient jamais.
Can en refer to people, or only things?
Primarily things or ideas: Je m’en souviens = “I remember it/that.” Referring to people with en is possible in casual speech but can sound ambiguous or informal. In careful style, use de lui/d’elle/eux: Je me souviens d’elle.
Any pronunciation tips for this sentence?
- Nous nous flows as [nu nu]; keep both but don’t over-emphasize.
- Souvenons and souvient have a nasal vowel at the end: [suvənɔ̃], [suvjɛ̃].
- S’en links smoothly before a vowel: [sɑ̃].
- Tandis que usually has a silent final -s in standard speech: [tɑ̃di kə]. Some regions may pronounce the -s.
How would this look in the past, and is there agreement on the participle?
- Passé composé: Nous nous sommes souvenus de ce pont, tandis que Marie ne s’en est jamais souvenu.
- With se souvenir de, the past participle souvenu is invariable (no agreement), because there’s no preceding direct object; de introduces an indirect complement, and en never triggers agreement.