French: Direct object agreement?

Question

Is the following correct, please?

IF BOTH A DIRECT AND INDIRECT OBJECT PRECEDE THE VERB, THE PAST PARTICIPLE AGREES WITH THE DIRECT OBJECT:

HE GAVE THEM TO ME:

IL ME LES A DONNÉS.

Thx!

Answer 1

Yes, it's correct.

Answer 2

yes, donner agrees with LES because LES it's placed before the auxiliary

Answer 3

"Il me les a donnés" is correct only IF the direct object is masculine ("Il m'a donné les livres.")  If the direct object is feminine ("Il m'a donné les fleurs"), you would have to say "Il me les a données."

Answer 4

Pronouns used as indirect objects tend to be gender neutral in French.  It therefore usually would be impossible to try to make a past participle agree with them in gender.  Direct object pronouns tend to reflect the gender of the noun.  Furthermore, it is the direct object which first preceedes the verb.  In other words, it is placed before the indirect object in a sentence construction that makes use of direct and indirect object pronouns.  I am not sure whether its position ahead of that of the indirect object makes any difference.

Here is an example:  They gave her to him.    Ils la lui ont donnée.

The same rule about the past participle agreeing with the direct object in gender and in number when the direct object precedes the verb would apply, whether or not an indirect object precedes it.