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Adjectifs
One of the eight parts of speech, adjectives are a type of modifier; that is, they modify or describe nouns in a certain way, letting you know the size, shape, weight, color, nationality, or any of a myriad other possible qualities of nouns.
Adjectives serve the same purpose in French and English, but they are very different in two other respects.
Characteristics of French Adjectives
- Modify nouns
- Must agree in gender and number with nouns
- Usually follow nouns
- May be modified by adverbs
1. Gender and Number of French Adjectives
English adjectives have a single form, but in French, they can have up to 4* forms, according to the gender and number of the nouns they modify:
| masculine singular | masculine plural | |
| feminine singular | feminine plural |
Masculine singular is the default form, to which the feminine and/or plural endings are added. For regular adjectives,** these endings are e for feminine and s for plural.
Par exemple…
petit (small)
| le petit verre | les petits verres | |
| la petite tasse | les petites tasses |
When the default form of the adjective ends in s or x, the masculine singular and plural forms are the same.
Par exemple…
surpris (surprised)
| Il est surpris. | Ils sont surpris. | |
| Elle est surprise. | Elles sont surprises. |
When the default form of the adjective ends in a, e, or o, the masculine and feminine forms are the same.
Par exemple…
calme (calm)
| un homme calme | des hommes calmes | |
| une femme calme | des femmes calmes |
*There are a few adjectives that have 5 forms.
**All regular and most irregular present participles and past participles follow these rules.
| Quiz: Adjective agreement |
2. Placement of French Adjectives
While English adjectives are always placed in front of the nouns they describe, most French adjectives follow nouns:
Par exemple…
| le stylo bleu | the blue pen | |
| une histoire intéressante | an interesting story |
| Beauty | une belle fille un joli appartement |
a beautiful girl a nice apartment |
| Age | un jeune homme une vieille dame |
a young man an old woman |
| Good and bad | une bonne idée un mauvais restaurant |
a good idea a bad restaurant |
| Size | un grand livre une petite maison |
a big book a small house |
Also see Adjectives that change meaning depending on their placement
- Introduction to adjectives
- Irregular feminine forms
- Irregular plurals
- Adjectives with prepositions
- Adjectives functioning as adverbs
- Non-adjectives
- PwLF super list of adjective lessons
- Impersonal expressions: Il est / C’est + adjective
- Determiners
- Introduction to nouns
- Parts of speech
French lesson plans
- Beach Time: Color Adjectives (Worksheet, 4th-1th grade)
- Describing Family (Lesson, 1st-6th grade)
- La Graphologie (Lesson, 9th-12th grade)
En español
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I have been an avid reader of your About French website since 2004 and had been archiving some of the interesting grammatical lessons. Although this version of the “Adjective” lesson is very much simplified than the previous version, it is much easier to follow and drives the message home quicker. Many thanks for keeping my interest in these lessons alive !