on le

we/you/they + him/it

→ on
phrase Very common #496
we/you/they + him/it Composed of on + le. In everyday French, on often means 'we', but it can also mean 'people', 'you', or 'they' depending on context. le is the direct object pronoun 'him' or 'it' and it comes before the verb. Before a vowel sound, le becomes l'.
FR: On le voit souvent au café.
EN: We often see him at the café.

On le retrouvera.

We will find him.

— Le vent se lève (2006)

Un comme ça, on le négocie proprement et sans bruit.

One like that, we negotiate cleanly and quietly.

— Le Bras de diamant (1969)

On le garde pour les pubs.

We're saving it for the ads.

— No (2012)

On le bute?

Should we kill him?

— La Cité de Dieu (2002)

Et avec quoi on le redresse?

And what do we use to straighten it?

— Salyut-7 (2017)

On le le surveille.

We’re keeping an eye on him.

— Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)

Ils ne sont pas toujours comme on le voudrait.

They are not always as we would like them to be.

— Voyage à Tokyo (1953)

On le croit.

We believe it.

Tu sais pourquoi on le retrouve pas?

Do you know why we can't find him?

— Dans ses yeux (2009)

On le sort et on le rentre dans ce camion!

We take it out and put it back in this truck!

— Le Patient anglais (1996)

Comment on le trouve?

How do we find it?

On le torture jusqu'à ce qu'il avoue.

We torture him until he confesses.

— Memories of Murder (2003)

On le ramène.

We're bringing him back.

Il se pourrait qu'il crie, mais dans ce cas on le finira à coups de botte.

He might scream, but in that case we’ll finish him off with boot kicks.

— Jojo Rabbit (2019)

On le retient en otage?

Are they holding him hostage?

— Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood (2019)

C'est là qu'on le produit.

That's where it's produced.

Je crois qu'on le tient.

I think we've got it.

On le laisse se reposer quelques heures et on recommence.

We let it rest for a few hours and start over.

— No (2012)

Quand on travaille à leur contact, on le voit.

When you work with them, you see it.

On le sent.

We feel it.

— Projet Dernière Chance (2026)

On le perdra dans l’ascenseur.

We'll lose him in the elevator.

— The Shadow's Edge (2025)

Est-ce qu'on le lui dit?

Should we tell him?

On le tient comme ça.

We hold it like this.

— Mon voisin Totoro (1988)

On le prend?

Shall we take it?

— Jean de Florette (1986)

À l’entendre parler anglais, on le prendrait pour un Anglais.

To hear him speak English, you would think he was English.

On le trouvera vite.

We’ll find him quickly.

— A Taxi Driver (2017)

On le remplace par du carburant, de l'eau, des vivres.

We replace it with fuel, water, and food supplies.

— Salyut-7 (2017)

On le fera voler cet été et j'en serai le pilote.

We'll fly it this summer, and I'll be the pilot.

— Kiki la petite sorcière (1989)

On le voyait si peu.

We saw him so rarely.

— Voyage à Tokyo (1953)

On le laissait plutôt libre.

He was left rather freely.

— Les Quatre Cents Coups (1959)

Papa il s'est tout pris dans la gueule, le pauvre, on le reconnaît à peine.

Dad took the full force of it to the face, poor guy—we can barely recognize him.

— Grave (2017)

Puis on le passe sur le visage.

Then you apply it to your face.

— L'Esprit de la ruche (1973)

Sinon, on le changera.

Otherwise, we'll change it.

— [REC] (2007)

On le mettra dans la salle de bains.

We'll put it in the bathroom.

On le dit décédé.

He is said to be deceased.

Un jour, on le prendra pour aller voir les avions.

One day, we'll take it to go see the planes.

— Nobody Knows (2004)

On le tenait.

We had him.

On le prend souvent pour son frère.

He is often mistaken for his brother.

On a toujours été meilleurs que toi, et on le sera toujours.

We've always been better than you, and we always will be.

— Zootopie 2 (2025)

On reste jusqu'à ce qu'on le retrouve.

We stay until we find him.

On le trouve difficilement ici.

It is hard to find here.

— Il est de retour (2015)

On le refait.

Let's do it again.

C'est ridicule, on le trouvera jamais.

It's ridiculous; we'll never find it.

— On ne vit qu'une seule fois (2011)

On le voit d'ici?

Can we see it from here?

— Les Diaboliques (1955)

Au Portugal, on le dit ainsi.

In Portugal, we say it like this.

On le garde à nous tous.

We're keeping it among ourselves.

— Les Lundis au soleil (2002)

On le cherche activement.

He is actively being sought.

— A Taxi Driver (2017)

On le lit?

Do we read it?

— Perfetti sconosciuti (2016)

On le cuit à la vapeur jusqu'à ce qu'il ressemble à une ruche.

Steam it until it looks like a honeycomb.

— Salé, Sucré (1994)

Et on le prend pour l'héritier de Serpentard?

And we take him for Slytherin’s heir?

— Harry Potter et la Chambre des secrets (2002)

On le soulève par les épaules.

We lift him by the shoulders.

— Le Cercle des neiges (2023)

Boss, on le tient!

Boss, we've got him!

— Porco Rosso (1992)

On le trace?

Shall we trace it?

— Reconnu coupable (2026)

On le rate toujours.

We always miss it.

— Dans ses yeux (2009)

On le retient!

We'll remember that!

— Primate (2026)

On le garde en ligne pour son intérêt historique.

It is kept online for its historical interest.

C'est là qu'on le trouvera.

That's where we'll find him.

On le sait, on le voit tous les jours, mais on l'ignore.

We know it, we see it every day, but we ignore it.

— Article 15 (2019)

Parfois, on le salue et il passe sans un mot, sans te remarquer.

Sometimes you greet him, and he walks past without a word, without noticing you.

— Apocalypse Now (1979)

On le laisse sortir?

Should we let him out?

— Nobody Knows (2004)

On le considère comme un fossile du paysage politique allemand.

He is considered a fossil of the German political landscape.

De toute façon, on le garde.

We're keeping it anyway.

— No (2012)

Je savais qu'on le paierai un jour.

I knew we would pay for it one day.

On le sera.

We will be.

Je n'ai aucune idée de comment on le dit ici.

I have no idea how to say it here.

On le perd!

We're losing him!

— En terrain miné (2014)

Est-ce qu'on le reverra un jour?

Will we ever see him again?

Progressivement, on le mettra peut-être dans une chambre.

Gradually, we might put it in a bedroom.

— Mommy (2014)

On le tient.

We've got him.

— Le Cinquième Élément (1997)

Ne t'inquiète pas, on le retrouvera.

Don't worry, we'll find him.

— La vie est belle (1997)

On le protège toutes.

We all protect him.

— Presque Célèbre (2000)

Et maintenant on le laisse attendre devant les grilles.

And now we’re leaving him waiting in front of the gates.

— Les Choristes (2004)

Butch, on le cherche comment?

How do we find Butch?

Mais on le prévient.

But he is being warned.

— Même la pluie (2011)

On le trouvera.

We will find it.

— Indiana Jones et la dernière croisade (1989)

On le représente avant qu'il ne se retourne.

We show him before he turns around.

— Portrait de la jeune fille en feu (2019)

On le fera voler!

We'll make it fly!

— 3 Idiots (2009)

Ça, on le prend, c'est sûr.

We’re definitely getting this one.

— Heureux comme Lazzaro (2018)

À l'entendre parler anglais, on le prendrait pour un locuteur natif.

Hearing him speak English, you’d take him for a native speaker.

On le laisse ?

Should we just leave it there?

— Black Panther (2018)

Sinon, on le laisse mourir.

Otherwise, we let it die.

— Memories of Murder (2003)

On le met?

Shall we put it on?

— Benni (2019)

On le dit très riche.

He is said to be very rich.

Mais on est venus tourner Anaconda et , on le vit.

But we came to film Anaconda and there, we saw it.

— Anaconda (2025)

On le teste pas, c'est lui qui nous teste.

We're not testing it; it's testing us.

— F1® Le Film (2025)

On le prend souvent pour un étudiant.

He is often mistaken for a student.

On le trouve ?

Where can I find it?

— Reservoir Dogs (1992)

On le relève.

We pick it up.

On le voit sur la tranche.

You can see it on the edge.

— Indiana Jones et la dernière croisade (1989)

On le garde.

We're keeping it.

On le met ?

Where do we put it?

On le dirait bien.

It looks like it.

Et on le surveille, dans notre rétroviseur.

And we're keeping an eye on it, in our rearview mirror.

— F1® Le Film (2025)

On le soulève.

We lift it up.

— Le Cercle des neiges (2023)

On le plante!

Let's plant it!

— Les Affranchis (1990)

On le trouva mystérieusement assassiné.

He was found mysteriously murdered.

On le rattrape pas!

We can't catch him!

— Astérix & Obélix : Mission Cléopâtre (2002)

On le vire vite fait.

We'll fire him quickly.

— Mystic River (2003)

On le retrouvera de toute façon.

We'll find him anyway.

— Ne le dis à personne (2006)

On le garde en prison.

He is being kept in prison.

— Enquête sur un citoyen au-dessus de tout soupçon (1970)

Tu veux, on le lui demande.

If you want, we can ask him/her.

— Le Miroir (1975)

On le bute ici!

We'll kill him here!

— Heureux comme Lazzaro (2018)

On le laisse tranquille.

We leave him alone.

— Voyage à Tokyo (1953)

On le coupe en morceaux avant de le faire mijoter avec du jambon.

It is cut into pieces before being simmered with ham.

— Salé, Sucré (1994)

On fonce et on le prend par surprise.

We rush in and take him by surprise.

— Atlantide, l'empire perdu (2001)

on le met?

Where do we put it?

Herr Docteur Thiel on le gardera à l'écart.

Dr. Thiel, we’ll keep him isolated.

— The Captain : L'usurpateur (2018)

Il est parti devant, on le rattrapera plus tard.

He went ahead, we'll catch him later.

On le servira ce soir.

We will serve it this evening.

— Astérix & Obélix : Mission Cléopâtre (2002)

On le persuada de changer sa décision.

He was persuaded to change his decision.

On le tire.

We pull it.

— Primate (2026)

On le raconte à maman?

Should we tell Mom?

— Moscou ne croit pas aux larmes (1980)

On le fait travailler de temps en temps.

We make him work from time to time.

— Rebecca (1940)

Mais on le retrouvera.

But we will find him.

— Les Diaboliques (1955)

On le ressort!

Let's bring it out again!

— Le Cercle des neiges (2023)

Tu n'as qu'à imaginer ce lieu, on le verra aussitôt.

You only have to imagine this place, and we'll see it right away.

— Avatar : La Voie de l'eau (2022)

On le fera évader sur le trajet du tribunal.

We’ll break him out on the way to the courthouse.

— The Legend of Bhagat Singh (2002)

Si on savait ce qui se passe, on le dirait.

If we knew what was going on, we would say so.

— [REC] (2007)

Nous, Italiens, on le lit aux pieds.

We Italians read it with our feet.

— Mon cœur est déjà pris (1999)

On peut organiser le projet comme on le désire.

The project can be organized as desired.

— La Vague (2008)

On le laisse partir?

Should we let him go?

C'est comme ça qu'on le ressent.

That's how it feels.

On aime quelqu'un ou on le hait.

We either love someone or hate them.

— Apocalypse Now (1979)

On le mérite, comme les autres.

We deserve it, just like the others.

— Carnets de voyage (2004)

On le dit.

They say so.

On le teste uniquement à l'oral.

We only test it orally.

— Des étoiles sur la terre (2007)

On le prend.

We take it.

C'est bon, on le tient.

It's good, we've got it.

— Reconnu coupable (2026)

On faisait de l'alcool au labo de chimie et on le cachait derrière le tableau.

We used to make alcohol in the chemistry lab and hide it behind the blackboard.

— Salé, Sucré (1994)

On le trouve pas.

We can't find it.

— Blow Out (1981)

On le rembourse?

Will we refund it?

— Perfetti sconosciuti (2016)

L'année prochaine on le fête ensemble, d'accord?

Next year, we’ll celebrate it together, okay?

— Silent Voice (2016)

On le voit.

We see it.

— La Vague (2008)

Demain matin, on le présentera devant le juge du tribunal pour enfants.

Tomorrow morning, he will be presented before the judge of the juvenile court.

— Les Quatre Cents Coups (1959)

On le hait à jamais!

We hate him forever!

— Le Hobbit : Un voyage inattendu (2012)

Viens, on le suit.

Come on, let's follow him.

— Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015)

Vous l'interrogez, puis on le ramène au Wakanda.

You question him, then we take him back to Wakanda.

— Black Panther (2018)

On le met pas en haut.

We don't put it at the top.

— American Gangster (2007)

On le dirait.

It looks like it.

— Le Garde du corps (1961)

Et on le tue.

And we kill him.

— Article 15 (2019)

Vous en faites pas, on le réchauffera, nous.

Don't worry, we'll reheat it.

— Requiem pour un massacre (1985)

On le suit à la trace depuis des mois.

We've been tracking him for months.

— Arrête-moi si tu peux (2002)

On le pose ici.

We put it here.

— Le Cercle des neiges (2023)

Le meneur, Kuang, on le surveillait depuis un moment.

We'd been keeping an eye on Kuang, the playmaker, for a while.

— Lust, Caution (2007)

On le trouve chez les gens riches, bien nourris, comme vous.

It is found among rich, well-fed people, like you.

— Aquarius (2016)

On le recherche toujours, mais votre fils va bien.

We're still looking for him, but your son is fine.

On le voit d'ici.

You can see it from here.

— Les Visiteurs (1993)