Amener, Emmener or Ramener?
Amener, emmener and ramener can all translate as “to take” or “to bring”. All three are built on mener, “to lead”, so they are used for people and animals. For things you carry, French uses apporter, emporter and rapporter.
What changes from one verb to the next is the prefix, and the prefix tells you where the focus of the journey is.
Amener
You take someone somewhere and leave them there.
The prefix a‑ points toward the destination. What matters is where the person ends up.
- Tous les samedis, j’amène ma fille à son cours de piano.Every Saturday, I take my daughter to her piano lesson. (I drop her off.)
- Peux-tu amener les enfants chez leurs grands-parents après l’école ?Can you take the children to their grandparents’ after school?
- Amène ton nouveau copain à ma fête d’anniversaire. Ce sera super de le rencontrer.Bring your new boyfriend to my birthday party. It’ll be great to meet him. (The focus is on the party, where he will arrive.)
Also: amener quelqu’un à faire quelque chose
Followed by à, amener means to lead someone to do something.
- Cette erreur a amené toute l’équipe à revoir sa méthode.This mistake led the whole team to rethink its method.
Emmener
You take someone with you, and you stay together.
The prefix em‑ comes from the old adverb en, “from there”. The focus is on the place you leave together: you go where they go.
- Cet été, j’emmène mes parents en croisière sur la Méditerranée.This summer, I’m taking my parents on a Mediterranean cruise. (I’m going too.)
- Il ne part jamais en randonnée sans emmener son border collie.He never goes hiking without taking his border collie.
Amener or emmener? Ask what happens when you arrive.
Ramener
You bring someone back.
The prefix re‑ adds the idea of a return to amener. The person goes back to a place they came from, or comes back to where you are.
- Il est tard, je te ramène chez toi.It’s late, I’ll take you home.
- Les voisins ont retrouvé notre chat et nous l’ont ramené.The neighbours found our cat and brought him back to us.
Amener or ramener? One outing, two journeys.
Also: ramener à un état antérieur
Used figuratively, ramener means to bring something or someone back to a previous state.
- Le professeur a ramené le calme dans la classe en quelques secondes.The teacher restored calm in the classroom within seconds.
- Ses amis ont essayé de le ramener à la raison.His friends tried to bring him back to his senses.
Related forms
You will come across these forms in conversation. Most of them belong to informal French.
| Form | Meaning and example |
|---|---|
| s’amener | to turn up familier Il s’est amené avec deux heures de retard. |
| se ramener | to turn up familier Ramène-toi, on t’attend ! |
| la ramener | to show off, to give your opinion when no one asked familier Il faut toujours qu’il la ramène ! |
| remmener | to take someone away again, back where they came from rare Après la visite, l’infirmière a remmené le patient dans sa chambre. |
What about objects?
In everyday speech, many French speakers use these three verbs for objects too: amène ton maillot de bain, j’emmène mon ordinateur, j’ai ramené du pain. You will hear this constantly. In writing, and in more formal speech, keep amener, emmener and ramener for people and animals, and use apporter, emporter and rapporter for things.
Check your understanding
Choose the verb that fits each sentence. An explanation appears after each answer.