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.
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
{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.
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.
