"tendre le doigt" or "tendre sa doigt"?

GregC1Kwiziq community member

"tendre le doigt" or "tendre sa doigt"?

Can you say "elle m'a tendu le doigt" instead of "sa doigt" because you know it's her finger?  I thought when it's obvious to whom the body part belongs, the French prefer not to specify as in "J'ai mal à la tête."

Asked 3 years ago
GregC1Kwiziq community memberCorrect answer
oops ignore my error of "sa doigt" I meant "'son doigt" with the same question….thanks. I'm lousy with genders!
ChrisC1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

I suspect the use of tendre son doigt has achieved idiomatic status. Note, however, that you still use possessive pronouns when there is special emphasis on the body part. See also: Special cases when you use mon/ma/mes/etc with parts of the body (French Possessive Adjectives)

"tendre le doigt" or "tendre sa doigt"?

Can you say "elle m'a tendu le doigt" instead of "sa doigt" because you know it's her finger?  I thought when it's obvious to whom the body part belongs, the French prefer not to specify as in "J'ai mal à la tête."

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