Social Indexicality in French Pronominal Address

This article examines the socially significant meanings generated through the use of the French second‐person singular pronominal address forms, tu and vous. The enduring complexity of this address system derives from the coexistence of two orders of indexical relations, which link particular patterns of pronominal usage with various contextual dimensions. Speakers' strategic use of pronominal forms and beliefs about the uses and users of language are emphasized as crucial to understanding the logic and evolution of such systems.