French Nouns
Definition:
A noun is a word that represents a thing, whether that thing is concrete (For Example a home, a cat) or abstract (an idea, happiness).
In French, all nouns have a gender - they are either masculine or feminine. It is very important to learn a noun's gender along with the noun itself because articles, adjectives, and some verbs have to agree with nouns; that is, they change depending on the gender of the noun they precede or follow. The gender of some nouns makes sense (homme (man) is masculine, femme (woman) is feminine) but others don't (personne (person) is always feminine, even if the person is a man!).
Examples in French:
There are some tendencies in the gender of nouns, but there are always exceptions. Countries and names that end in e are usually (but not always) feminine. There are a few common patterns, but please don't use these as a way to avoid learning the genders of nouns - just learn each word as gender + noun and then you'll know them forever.
Plural of Regular French Nouns
Most French nouns form their plural by adding the letter S. The plural form will usually sound the same as the singular. Nevertheless, the French add the letter S when they write. While the indefinite form of the article is un or une, its plural form is des for both masculine and feminine nouns.
Nearly all French nouns have different forms for singular and plural. In addition, many nouns that refer to people have both a masculine and a feminine form. Many of the rules here also apply to adjectives.
Note that the gender rules apply only to people and some animals. They do not apply to objects, which have a masculine or a feminine form, never both.
In French, all nouns have a gender - they are either masculine or feminine. It is very important to learn a noun's gender along with the noun itself because articles, adjectives, and some verbs have to agree with nouns; that is, they change depending on the gender of the noun they precede or follow. The gender of some nouns makes sense (homme (man) is masculine, femme (woman) is feminine) but others don't (personne (person) is always feminine, even if the person is a man!).
| un livre | book |
| une chaise | chair |
There are some tendencies in the gender of nouns, but there are always exceptions. Countries and names that end in e are usually (but not always) feminine. There are a few common patterns, but please don't use these as a way to avoid learning the genders of nouns - just learn each word as gender + noun and then you'll know them forever.
| ENDING | IN GENERAL | EXCEPTIONS | |
| -ion | Feminine | un lion un scion un avion |
un million un billion un bastion |
| -té | Feminine | un comité | un invité |
| -ée | Feminine | un lycée | un musée |
| -age | Masculine | une page une nage une cage |
une plage une rage une image |
| -eau | Masculine | l'eau (fem.) | une peau |
Plural of Regular French Nouns
Most French nouns form their plural by adding the letter S. The plural form will usually sound the same as the singular. Nevertheless, the French add the letter S when they write. While the indefinite form of the article is un or une, its plural form is des for both masculine and feminine nouns.
Note that the gender rules apply only to people and some animals. They do not apply to objects, which have a masculine or a feminine form, never both.
- Most nouns add an e for feminine and an s for plural
SINGULAR PLURAL SINGULAR PLURAL MASC. invité invités ami amis FEM. invitée invitées amie amies
- When a noun ends in e, there is no difference between the masculine and feminine forms
SINGULAR PLURAL MASC. touriste touristes FEM. touriste touristes - When a noun ends in s, x, or z there is no difference between the singular and plural forms
SINGULAR PLURAL le fils les fils le gaz les gaz - Irregular gender patterns
ENDING MASC. FEM. -an paysan paysanne -en gardien gardienne -on patron patronne -er boulanger boulangère -eur danseur danseuse -teur acteur actrice - Irregular plural patterns
ENDING SINGULAR PLURAL -ail travail travaux -al cheval chevaux -eau château chateaux -eu feu feux -ou bijou bijoux
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