M'en and t'en in affirmative imperative

French loves to be smooth. It hates it when sounds crash into each other. Usually, when you give a command, you put the pronoun after the verb. You say Regarde-moi (Look at me) or Lave-toi (Wash yourself). But when you add the word en (which means "some," "of it," or "from there"), things get crowded. The words moi and toi are like big suitcases. They take up too much room. When en shows up, they shrink down to fit. Moi becomes m' and toi becomes t'. They then glue themselves to en. The result? m'en and t'en. This contraction happens because en starts with a vowel. French phonetics demand that we avoid the awkward "ah-eh" sound of moi en. So, we skip the vowel and slide right into it. It sounds better. It flows faster. It is basically the French language being lazy in the most sophisticated way possible. You are essentially combining two pronouns into one rhythmic unit that hangs off the end of your verb.

1. 1Creating these commands follows a very strict 1-2-3 recipe. Do not skip a step, or the whole thing falls apart like a bad souffle.
2. 2Pick your verb in the command form (the imperative). For example, donne (give) or va (go).
3. 3Add a mandatory hyphen -. This is the glue that holds the command together.
4. 4Attach the contracted pronoun pair: m'en or t'en.
5. 5Here is what it looks like in action: Donne + - + m'en = Donne-m'en. This literally means "Give me some of it." If you are telling someone to use something, you might take sers (serve/use) and add t'en to get Sers-t'en. Notice how the pronoun always comes at the end. In the world of French commands, the verb is the boss and leads the way. The pronouns are the followers, trailing behind and connected by that essential little dash.

Use these patterns when you are in the heat of the moment. It is perfect for casual settings. You are at a bakery? "Sers-m'en deux" (Serve me two of them). You are at home and your roommate is hogging the chocolate? "Donne-m'en un morceau!" (Give me a piece of it!). It is also the go-to for the most famous French "get lost" phrase: Va-t'en!. This uses the verb aller (to go) + t' (yourself) + en (away from here). It is blunt. It is effective. Use it when someone is bothering you at a bar or when your cat is trying to eat your lunch. You can also use m'en when asking someone to tell you more about a topic: Parle-m'en (Talk to me about it). It shows you are engaged and know your grammar. It is a win-win. Basically, if the thing you want (the "it" or "some") has already been mentioned, use these shortcuts.

There is one huge red light you need to watch for: the negative. The second you say "Don't," the rules flip upside down. In a negative command like "Don't give me any," the pronouns jump back in front of the verb. It becomes Ne m'en donne pas. Notice how the contraction m'en is still there, but the hyphen is gone and the order is totally different. The m'en and t'en at the end of a verb is a "positive vibes only" club. Also, do not use it if you are being extremely formal or writing a legal document. In those cases, you might use the full noun to avoid any ambiguity. But for 99% of your life in France, the affirmative imperative version is what you will hear and use. If you find yourself trying to use it in the middle of a long, complex sentence, stop. It belongs at the end of a crisp command.

1. 1The "Moi-En" Disaster: Many people try to say Donne-moi en. It sounds like a car engine stalling. French speakers will understand you, but their ears will hurt. Always contract to m'en.
2. 2The Missing Hyphen: In writing, the hyphen is not optional. It is the law. Donne m'en (without the dash) is technically incorrect. It is like forgetting the period at the end of a sentence.
3. 3The "S" Confusion: Usually, -er verbs like donner lose their s in the tu command form (donne). Some people think they need to add the s back because m'en starts with a vowel sound. Nope! The s only comes back if the *very next letter* is a vowel. Since m is a consonant, it stays Donne-m'en. Do not add an extra s just because you feel like it!
4. 4Mixing up Me and You: Remember that m'en is for things coming to *me*, and t'en is often used for reflexive actions for *you* (like "get yourself out of here").

How does this compare to other pronouns? Well, if you just want to say "Give it to me" (a specific item like a book), you would say Donne-le-moi. Notice the order: Verb-Object-Person. But with en, the order shifts to Verb-Person-Object (contracted). It is a special case because en is a bit of a rebel. You might also see m'y or t'y (like in mène-m'y, "take me there"), which follows the exact same contraction logic. The vowel in y forces moi and toi to shrink just like en does. If you can master m'en, you have already mastered m'y. They are grammatical twins. Think of them as a team of tiny words designed to keep the French language moving at a brisk, melodic pace.