gender of indirect object

Question

Elle m'a répondu- I take that the past participle here is not feminine because the me (which refers to the female narrator) is an indirect object?Kind regards,Kevin

Accepted Answer

Bonjour Kevin,
Elle m'a répondu = she replied [to me] -> répondre à qqn / to reply to [sb] 
m' = indirect object + refers to a woman -> the past participle only agrees with a direct object when the direct object is placed before 'avoir + past participle' - this is not the case here
See link here about when the past participle agrees: special cases when the past participle agrees in number and gender (see 'Attention')
I hope this is helpful.
Bonne journée !

Answer

Hi Kevin,"Marielle took her grandmother to buy a mobile phone."répondre à (qqn) so although the speaker is feminine (Marielle) I agree with you that this is an indirect object.Jim

Answer

No, the past participle (répondu) is in the gender neutral (male) form because the auxiliary verb is "avoir". It would be matched to a direct object only, never an indirect object, and only if the direct object precedes the verb.