Adjectives Flashcards

To learn how to make adjectives agree and their irregular forms.

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1
Q
To make a REGULAR adjective (end in -u, -i, -é, -t) into the..
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. petit:

1) -e (petite)
2) -s (petits)
3) -es (petites)

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2
Q
Adjective ending in -e into the..
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. jaune:

1) nothing! (jaune)
2) -s (jaunes)
3) -s (jaunes)

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3
Q
Adjectives ending in -s into the...
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. gros

1) -se (grosse)
2) nothing! (gros)
3) -ses (grosses)

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4
Q
Adjectives ending in -on into the...
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. bon

1) -ne (bonne)
2) -s (bons)
3) -nes (bonnes)

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5
Q
Adjectives ending in -eux into the...
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. heureux

1) -euse (heureuse)
2) nothing! (heureux)
3) -euses (heureuses)

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6
Q
Adjectives ending in -er into the...
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. premier

1) -ère (première)
2) -ers (premiers)
3) -ères (premières)

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7
Q
Adjectives ending in -f into the...
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. sportif

1) -ve (sportive)
2) -fs (sportifs)
3) -ves (sportives)

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8
Q
Adjectives ending in -el into the...
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. personnel

1) -le (personnelle)
2) -s (personnels)
3) -les (personnelles)

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9
Q

Adjectives that end in er or et need a grave accent:

Ending: er > ère

Ending: et > ète

A

E.g. cher

1) -ère
2) -s
3) -ères

E.g. complet

4) -ète
5) -s
6) -ètes

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10
Q
Adjectives ending in -c into the...
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. blanc

1) -che
2) -cs
3) -ches

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11
Q
Adjectives ending in -eur into the...
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. flatteur (flattering)

1) -euse (flatteuse)
2) -eurs (flatteurs)
3) -euses (flatteuses)

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12
Q
Adjectives ending in -al into the...
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

E.g. idéal

1) -e
2) -aux
3) -ales

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13
Q
beautiful; beau into the...
after a vowel/H
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

1) bel
2) belle
3) beaux
4) belles

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14
Q
new; nouveau into the...
after a vowel/H
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

1) nouvel
2) nouvelle
3) nouveaux
4) nouvelles

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15
Q
crazy, fou into the...
after a vowel/H
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

1) fol
2) folle
3) fous
4) folles

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16
Q
soft, mou into the...
after a vowel/H
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

1) mol
2) molle
3) mous
4) molles

17
Q
old, vieux into the...
after a vowel/H
feminine singular;
masculine plural;
feminine plural;
form, you must add what?
A

1) vieil
2) vieille
3) vieux
4) vieilles

18
Q

When the masculine singular adjective ends in an unaccented E, there is no difference between the masculine and feminine forms.

A

E.g. rouge

1) nothing! (rouge)
2) -s (rouges)
3) -s (rouges)

19
Q

When the default form of the adjective ends in S or X, there is no difference between the masculine singular and plural forms.

A

E.g. gris

1) -e (grise)
2) nothing! (gris)
3) -es (grises)

20
Q

Placement: After the noun

  • Includes most descriptive adjectives.
  • Normally have an analytical meaning (i.e. they classify the noun into a certain category).
  • Include shape, color, taste, nationality, religion, social class, and other adjectives that describe things like personality and mood.
A
une table ronde - round table
un livre noir - black book
du thé sucré - sweet tea
une femme américaine - American woman
une église catholique - Catholic church
une famille bourgeoise - middle-class family
21
Q

In addition, present participles and past participles used as adjectives are always placed _______ the noun.

A

after.
E.g. une histoire intéressante - interesting story
un débat passionné - lively debate

22
Q

Placement: Before the noun

Certain adjectives are placed before the noun, some which you can memorize with the acronym “BAGS”:

Beauty
Age
Good and bad
Size (except for grand with people - see 3, below)

These descriptors - and a few others - are considered inherent qualities of the noun

A
une jolie fille - pretty girl
   un jeune homme - young man
   une nouvelle maison - new house
   un bon enfant - good child
   un petit problème - small problem
   les sincères condoléances - sincere condolences
   les vagues promesses - vague promises
   un gentil garçon - kind boy
23
Q

In addition, all non-descriptive (i.e., demonstrative, indefinite, interrogative, negative, and possessive) adjectives are placed ________ the noun.

A
before
   ces livres - these books
   chaque personne - each person
   quel stylo ? - which pen?
   aucune femme - no woman
   mon enfant - my child
24
Q

Placement: Depends on Meaning
Some adjectives have both a figurative and an analytic (literal) sense and can thus be placed on either side of the noun. When the adjective is figurative, it goes before the noun, and when it’s analytic, it goes after the noun.

A

Figurative: mes vertes années my green (fruitful) years
Literal: des légumes verts green vegetables

Figurative: un grand homme a great man
Literal: un homme grand a tall man

Figurative: un triste individu a sad (mean or bad) person
Literal: un individu triste a sad (crying) person

Figurative: mon ancienne école my old (former) school
Literal: mon école ancienne my old (aged) school

Figurative: un certain regard a certain (type of) look
Literal: une victoire certaine a certain (assured) victory

25
Q

Demonstrative Adjectives - Definition & Use

A

Demonstrative adjectives (this, that, these, those) are words used in place of articles to indicate a specific noun. In French, they must agree in gender and number with the noun they modify:

26
Q
Demonstrative Adjectives - Formation
masculine singular
masculine noun (vowel or mute h)
feminine singular
plural
A

1) Ce:
E.g. Ce prof parle trop. - This (That) teacher talks too much.
J’aime ce livre. - I like this (that) book.

2) Cet
Cet homme est sympa. - This (That) man is nice.
Je connais cet endroit. - I know this (that) place.

3) Cette
Cette idée est intéressante. - This (That) idea is interesting.
Je veux parler à cette fille. - I want to talk to this (that) girl.

4) Ces
Ces livres sont stupides. - These (Those) books are stupid.
Je cherche ces femmes. - I’m looking for these (those) women.

27
Q

Indefinite adjectives

Indefinite adjectives always come before a noun and agree with the noun.

A

Chaque means ‘each’ or ‘every’ but is only used in the singular form:
Chaque matin, elle se lève à sept heures (She gets up at seven every morning)
Quelque means ‘some’ or ‘any’ (in questions):
Depuis quelque temps, il est malheureux (He’s been unhappy for some time)
Just add an -s for the plural form quelques, which means ‘some’, ‘a few’ or ‘any’ (in questions):
Je passe quelques jours en France (I’m in France for a few days)