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Déterminants
Determiners are a category of grammatical terms including articles, numbers, and non-qualifying adjectives. Unlike descriptive adjectives,* determiners serve two functions: they introduce and modify nouns at the same time. Determiners are used much more frequently in French than in English.
Characteristics of French Determiners
- Introduce and modify nouns
- Always precede nouns
- Must agree in gender and number with nouns
- Cannot be modified
- Cannot be used with other determiners (i.e., only one determiner is allowed per noun)**
- Can be used with descriptive adjectives
Types of French Determiners
| All three types of articles are determiners: | |||
| 1) | Definite articles | le lait les enfants |
(the) milk (the) children |
| 2) | Indefinite articles | une bouteille des enfants |
a bottle some children |
| 3) | Partitive articles | du lait des épinards |
some milk some spinach |
| As are cardinal numbers** | |||
| Cardinal numbers | trois enfants dix bouteilles |
three children ten bottles |
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All the different types of non-descriptive adjectives are also determiners.
| 1) | Demonstrative adjectives | cette leçon ces enfants |
this lesson those children |
| 2) | Exclamative adjectives | quel aventure ! quelle bonne idée ! |
what an adventure! what a good idea! |
| 3) | Indefinite adjectives | chaque enfant certaines idées |
each child certain ideas |
| 4) | Interrogative adjectives | quel enfant ? quelles idées ? |
which child? which ideas? |
| 5) | Negative adjectives | je ne vois aucun enfant nulle eau y a été trouvée |
I don’t see any child no water was found there |
| 6) | Possessive adjectives | votre idée mes enfants |
your idea my children |
| 7) | Relative adjectives | j’ai vu l’enfant, lequel enfant pleurait | I saw the child, said child was crying |
* Descriptive adjectives, such as blue, hot, small, or lovely, are what you typically think of when someone says "adjective," They have a single function: to describe nouns.
** Articles, cardinal numbers, and some indefinite adjectives are exceptions: they can be used together.
- les dix enfants dans l’autre salle – the ten children in the other room
- un certain point – a certain point
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