We write a professional email, we proofread it one last time, and doubt arises: should we write “les voici” or “les voicis”? This question comes up often because our instinct is to mark the plural on every word that accompanies a plural group. In French, voici is an invariable word: it never takes an “s”, regardless of the number of elements presented.
Why we hesitate between voici, voilà, and les voici in a sentence
The problem does not stem from a lack of vocabulary. It arises from the fact that “voici” resembles a conjugated verb. Historically, the word is a contraction of “vois ici”. This verbal origin leads us to want to agree it, just as we would agree a past participle.
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In practice, we confuse three distinct uses that do not serve the same function in the sentence:
- Voici is used to present something close, that we are showing or will detail right after. “Voici les documents que vous avez demandés” introduces a new element into the conversation.
- Voilà refers more to what is already known, further away, or what has just been discussed. “Voilà les résultats de l’audit” concludes an expectation. It is also used to summarize what has preceded.
- Les voici refers back to a group already identified by the two speakers. If someone asks “Where are the keys?”, we respond “Les voici” while handing them over. The pronoun “les” replaces the noun, and “voici” remains unchanged.
There is a detailed article on the spelling of les voici and les voicis that confirms this logic: it is the context around the word that carries the plural, not “voici” itself.
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Voici in the plural: the spelling rule to remember
The rule can be summed up in one line. Voici never changes form. Singular, plural, masculine, feminine: we always write “voici”, without adding any letters.
It is the words that revolve around “voici” that normally agree:
- The determiner agrees: “voici les rapports”, “voici une proposition”.
- The noun that follows takes the plural marker: “voici les factures“.
- The adjective that qualifies this noun also agrees: “voici les nouvelles conditions“.
- The verb that follows in a relative clause agrees with its subject: “voici les dossiers qui sont prêts”.
The form “voicis” does not exist in any reference dictionary. If you see it somewhere, it is a mistake.
Case of the pronoun placed before voici
When a complement pronoun precedes “voici”, the logic remains the same. We write “les voici”, “nous voici”, “me voici”. The pronoun carries the information of number or person. “Voici” remains fixed.
Let’s take a concrete situation: a colleague is looking for labels in a box. We find them and say “Les voici”. No one would write “Les voicis”, and for good reason: no grammatical rule justifies this addition.
Voici or voilà: when to use one rather than the other
Competitors mainly address the spelling, but the real difficulty in everyday use lies in the choice between “voici” and “voilà”. In everyday exchanges, “voilà” has largely taken precedence, even where “voici” would be more appropriate.
The classic distinction is based on proximity. “Voici” introduces what is happening, what is close, or what will follow. “Voilà” refers to what has already passed, is further away, or has already been mentioned. In professional correspondence, “voici le devis” announces an attached document, while “voilà le devis dont nous avions parlé” recalls a previous exchange.
Concrete examples to decide
Direct presentation situation: we hand over an object, we show a person. “Voici mon associé, Marc.” We present him here and now.
Reminder situation: we conclude a point already addressed. “Voilà ce que nous proposons.” We wrap up a reasoning.
Pronoun resumption situation: someone asks for the reports, we bring them. “Les voici.” The pronoun “les” replaces “les comptes rendus”, and “voici” plays its role of immediate presentation.
When in doubt, “voici” works when we show, “voilà” when we summarize. Feedback varies on this point among grammarians, but this distinction remains the most reliable for everyday use.
Common mistakes with voici in written text
Beyond the form “voicis”, other awkwardnesses recur in professional texts and school essays.
The first consists of placing a capital letter after “voici” in the middle of a sentence. “Voici” does not call for a capital letter on the following word, unless it is a proper noun. We write “voici les résultats”, not “voici Les résultats”.
The second mistake concerns the agreement of the verb that follows. In “voici les candidats qui ont été retenus”, the verb “ont été retenus” agrees with “candidats”, not with “voici”. The grammatical subject remains the noun, not the presentative.
The third touches on punctuation. Sometimes we see “voici : les pièces jointes”. The colon after “voici” is superfluous in most cases, since “voici” already introduces what follows. We keep it only when a long enumeration follows, for readability reasons.
Remembering that “voici” functions as a presentation tool, invariable and direct, is enough to avoid most of these pitfalls. The plural is constructed around the word, never on it.