nouns Flashcards
All French nouns have a gender, what are they?
Masculine and feminine.
There are patterns that help in remembering a noun’s gender. E.G. nouns ending in -isme are usually masculine.
Nouns ending in ‘isme’ are typically?
masculine
e.g. le racisme (racism)
N.B. masculine nouns are introduced with an article:- le, l’ or un
Nouns ending in ‘age’ are typically?
masculine
e.g. le fromage (the cheese)
Nouns ending in ‘eau’ are typically?
masculine
e.g. le chapeau (the hat)
Nouns ending in ‘ment’ are typically?
masculine
e.g. l’appartement
N.B If the noun begins with a vowel or a mute ‘h’, the definite articles le and la are contracted to l’.
Nouns ending in ‘tion’ are typically?
feminine
e.g. la climatisation (the air conditioning)
feminine masculine nouns are introduced with an article:- la, l’ or une
Nouns ending in ‘ie’ are typically?
feminine
e.g. la boulangerie (the bakery)
nouns ending in ‘ité’ are typically?
feminine
e.g. l’égalité
(the legality)
N.B If the noun begins with a vowel or a mute ‘h’, the definite articles le and la are contracted to l’.
What is the masculine definite article; ‘the’ ?
le
What is the feminine definite article; ‘the’ ?
la
What is the definite article, ‘the’, if the noun begins with a vowel or mute ‘h’?
l’
What is the plural definite article; ‘the’ ?
les
What is the masculine indefinite article; ‘a’ or ‘an’?
un
What is the feminine indefinite article; ‘a’ or ‘an’?
une
What is the plural indefinite article; ‘some’?
des
What is the masculine partitive article; ‘some’?
e.g some cheese
du
e.g du fromage
N.B. the phrase ‘de le’ is always contracted to ‘du’
What is the feminine partitive article; ‘some’?
e.g some ice
de la
e.g. de la glace
What is the partitive article if the noun begins with a vowel?
e.g. some money
de l’
e.g. de l’argent
In negative constructions, what article is always used regardless of gender or whether the noun is in the singular or plural form?
e.g. I don’t have any dogs
de
e.g. Je n’ai pas de chien
Most plural forms of a noun are formed by adding what to the singular form?
an ’s’
e.g le chat …. les chats
(the cat …. the cats)
How are the plurals usually formed for nouns whose singular form ends ‘al’?
by replacing ‘al’ with ‘aux’
e.g. un animal…. des animaux
(an animal …. animals)
How are the plurals usually formed for nouns whose singular form ends ‘au’?
By adding an ‘x’ to the singular form
e.g. le chapeau …. les chapeaux
(the hat …. the hats)
How are the plurals usually formed for nouns whose singular form ends ‘eu’?
By adding an ‘x’ to the singular form
e.g. un jeu …. des jeux
(a game …. games)
How are the plurals usually formed for nouns whose singular form ends ‘s’?
no change
e.g. une souris…. des souris
(a mouse …. mice)
How are the plurals usually formed for nouns whose singular form ends ‘x’?
no change
e.g. le prix…. les prix
(the prize …. the prizes)
How are the plurals usually formed for nouns whose singular form ends ‘z’?
no change
e.g. le nez…. les nez
(the nose …. the noses)
