Is it true that the pronouns on and nous can be used anytime we want to indicate we? I’ve heard that using nous is more formal, but is it wrong?

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Accepted Answer

Hi Liz,
Indeed you are right, the French will use 'on' for 'nous' all the time that is why teaching it is so important....
In formal written form, 'nous' will be more elegant...
Hope this helps!

Answer

Hi Joan,
In written form, 'on' meaning 'nous' will be avoided ( except perhaps in informal family emails and the like).
Probably the only time you will encounter 'on' in written form (maybe in newspapers)  it will be for the general meaning of one /people/ universal you ...when you can say 'on n'a pas de nom' ...
e.g.
On dit que la pollution humaine est la cause de bien des maux = it is said that human pollution is the source of many evils.
Hope this helps!

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so they can be interchangeably  but french speakers use ''on'' on daily basis. while ''nous'' is used mostly for very formal and written form?

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In a nutshell yes....

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Thanks for you reply.

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When we want to say 'we', it is more elegant to use 'nous' instead of 'on', but when we want to say 'you/one/people' in formal writing , can we use 'on'?