et le tien
In French, "and yours" can be translated as et le tien.
This phrase is used as a short response to ask the same question back to the other person.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the conjunction et (and) and the masculine possessive pronoun le tien (yours).
Which one should you use?
Use et la tienne instead of et le tien if the object being referred to is grammatically feminine. Use et le vôtre (masculine) or et la vôtre (feminine) when using the formal vous instead of the informal tu.
Did you know?
- The word tien comes from the Latin neuter tuum. This is a linguistic relative of the English word 'thine'.
- Using et le tien with a stranger or a superior is considered a significant social faux pas, as it improperly uses the 'tu' form of address.
- In many Romance languages like Spanish or Italian, the word for 'and' is often a single letter, such as 'y' or 'e', whereas French retains the 't' from 'et'.
Examples in context
- J'aime mon nouveau sac, et le tien ?I love my new bag, and yours?
- Mon chat est très mignon, et le tien ?My cat is very cute, and yours?
- C'est mon projet préféré, et le tien ?It's my favorite project, and yours?
Example conversation
Emma and Hugo are talking about their phones.
- EmmaMon téléphone est neuf.My phone is new.
- HugoC'est super ! Et le tien, il est quelle couleur ?That's great! And yours, what color is it?
- EmmaLe mien est noir.Mine is black.
- HugoMoi aussi, j'ai un noir.Me too, I have a black one.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries et, le, tien, CC BY-SA 4.0.
