adjectives Flashcards
How must an adjective agree with the noun it describes?
In French, adjectives have different endings according to whether they are masculine and feminine, singular or plural.
What ending does the masculine singular form take?
None. It is the default (dictionary) form and has no extra ending.
e.g. Mon frère est petit (my brother is small)
In general, what ending does the masculine plural form take?
Add an ‘s’ to the masculine singular form:
e.g. Mes frères sont petits
(My brothers are small)
In general, what ending does the feminine singular form take?
Add an ‘e’ to the masculine singular form:
e.g. Ma sœur est petite
(My sister is small)
In general, what ending does the feminine plural form take?
Add an ‘s’ to the femine singular form:
e.g. Mes sœurs est petites
(My sisters are small)
If the masculine singular form of the adjective ends in ‘e’, how is the feminine singular form derived?
No extra ‘e’ is added to the masculine singular form to create the female singular form of the adjective.
e.g rouge
un vélo rouge (a red bike)
une voiture rouge (a red car)
{N.B. if the adjective ends in é, an e is added.
mon film préferé (my favourite film)
ma chanson préferée (my favourite song)}
If the masculine singular form of the adjective ends in ‘eux’, how is the feminine singular form derived?
The female singular form of the adjective ends in ‘euse’ rather than ‘eux’.
e.g. un garçon heureux (a happy boy)
une fille heureuse (a happy girl)
If the masculine singular form of the adjective ends in ‘eur’, how is the feminine singular form derived?
The female singular form of the adjective ends in ‘euse’ rather than ‘eux’.
e.g. un garçon travailleur (a hard-working boy)
une fille travailleuse (a hard-working girl)
If the masculine singular form of the adjective ends in ‘ive’, how is the feminine singular form derived?
The female singular form of the adjective ends in ‘if’ rather than ‘ive’.
e.g.
un garçon sportive (a sporty boy)
une fille sportif (a sporty girl)
If the masculine singular form of the adjective ends in ‘eau’, how is the feminine singular form derived?
The female singular form of the adjective ends in ‘elle’ rather than ‘eau’.
e.g.
un vélo nouveau (a new bike)
une voiture nouvelle (a new cars)
If the masculine singular form of the adjective ends in a consonant, what is sometimes done to derive the feminine singular form?
The final consonant is sometimes doubled, before adding an ‘e’ to form the feminine singular form.
e.g.
il est italien (he is Italian)
elle est italienne (she is Italian)
What is the feminine singular form of ‘blanc’ (white)?
blanche
In general, how are masculine plural forms generated for most adjectives ending in -al?
Most adjectives ending in ‘-al’ change to ‘-aux’ (masculine plural) or to ‘-ales’ (femine plural).
e.g.
topical (tropical) … tropicaux
What is the masculine plural form of banal?
banals
(this is an exception)
Where are adjectives generally placed in French sentences?
after the noun to which they refer
e.g. un chat noir (a black cat)
What categories of adjectives are placed before the noun?
beauty - une jolie fille (a pretty girl)
rank - le premier crû (the first rose)
age - un jeune garçon (a young boy)
goodness - le mauvais chien (a bad dog)
size - une petite souris (a little mouse)
acronym BRAGS.
{N.B. a few adjectives that come in front of the noun have a special masculine form when followed by a vowel or mute h.
e.g
un beau garçon (a handsome boy)
un bel homme}
What is the masculine singular form of the adjective nouveau, that is used when followed by a noun that begins with a vowel or mute h.
nouvel
e.g.
un nouvel ami (a new friend
What are the 3 forms of the possessive adjective used for ‘my’?
mon
masculine singular
mon père (my father)
ma
feminine singular
ma mère (my mother)
mes
plural
mes parents (my parents)
What are the 3 forms of the possessive adjective used for ‘your’ (singular) ?
ton
masculine singular
ton père (your father)
ta
feminine singular
ta mère (your mother)
tes
plural
tes parents (your parents)
What are the 3 forms of the possessive adjective used for ‘his/her/its’?
son
masculine singular
son père (his/her father)
sa
feminine singular
sa mère (his/her mother)
ses
plural
ses parents ((his/her parents)
What are the 2 forms of the possessive adjective used for ‘our’?
notre
masculine & feminine singular
notre père (our father)
notre mère (our mother)
nos
plural
nos parents (our parents)
What are the 2 forms of the possessive adjective used for ‘your’ (plural or polite singular)?
votre
masculine & feminine singular
votre père (your father)
votre mère (your mother)
vos
plural
vos parents (your parents)
What are the possessive adjectives (masc singular, fem singular and plural) for ‘their’?
leur
masculine & feminine singular
leur père (their father)
leur mère (their mother)
leurs
plural
leurs parents (your parents)
What is the masculine singular form of the interrogative adjective ‘Which’?
quel
e.g.
C’est quel dessin?
(Which drawing is it?)
What is the masculine plural form of the interrogative adjective ‘Which’?
quels
e.g.
Quels chats sont noirs?
(Which cats are black?)
What is the feminine singular form of the interrogative adjective ‘Which’?
quelle
e.g.
Quelle heure est-il?
(What time is it?)
What is the feminine plural form of the interrogative adjective ‘Which’?
quelles
e.g.
Quelle sont tes matières préférés?
(What are your favourite subjects?)
What are the 2 forms of the indefinite adjective used for ‘other’?
autre
masculine and feminine singular
autres
plural
What are the 4 forms of the indefinite adjective used for ‘certain’? ‘
certain
masculine singular
certaine
feminine sinegular
certains
masculine plural
certaines
feminine plural
What is the only form of the indefinite adjective used for ‘each’?
chaque
n. b. chaque is always singular
e. g. Il y a une télévision dans chaque chambre.
(There is a televison in each room)
What are the 2 forms of the indefinite adjective used for ‘same’?
même
masculine and feminine singular
mêmes
masculine and feminine plural
What is the single forms of the indefinite adjective used for ‘several’?
plusieurs
N.B. plusieurs is always plural
e.g. Il a plusieurs voitures.
(He has several cars)
What are the 2 forms of the indefinite adjective used for ‘some’?
quelque
masculine and feminine singular
quelques
masculine and feminine plural
What are the 2 forms of the indefinite adjective used for ‘all’?
tout
masculine singular
toute
feminine singular
tous
masculine plural
toutes
feminine plural
What are the 2 masculine singular forms of the demonstrative adjectives ‘this’?
ce
ce magasin (this shop)
cet
before a noun beginning with a vowel or mute ‘h’
cet homme (this man)
What is the feminine singular form of the demonstrative adjectives ‘this’?
cette
e.g.
cette chemise (this shirt)
What is the pluraform of tlhe demonstrative adjectives ‘these’?
ces
e.g.
ces baskets (these trainers)
Comparatives - what phrase is used for ‘more … than’?
le/la/les … est plus … que …
e.g.
Le chat est plus grand que la souris
(The cat is bigger than the mouse)
Comparatives - what phrase is used for ‘less … than’?
le/la/les … est moins … que …
e.g.
La souris est moins grand que le chat
(The mouse is smaller than the cat)
Comparatives - what phrase is used for ‘same … as’?
le/la/les … est aussi … que …
e.g.
Les tomates est aussi cher que les bananes
(The tomato is as expensive as the bananas)
Superlatives - how do you say that one (noun) is the most.
le/la/les plus ….
e.g.
Le girafe est le plus grand animal
(The giraffe is the biggest animal)
What partative article should be used with nouns that have a preceding adjective?
Use ‘de’ or if the noun begins with a vowel or mute ‘h’, d’
e.g.
Il a mangé de magnifiques gâteaux.
What is the comparative/superlative for bon (good)?
meilleur(e)
Elle est la meilleure!
(She is the best!)
What is the comparative/superlative for mauvais (good)?
pire
n.b.
Mon frère est la pire
(My brother is the worst)
