-issime Suffix
adjectives
French adjectives describe nouns in various ways and usually have to agree with them in gender and number.
adjectives • spelling • suffixes
Adjective Types
An adjective is something like "a word that describes a noun." If asked to name some adjectives, you might come up with words like small, pretty, and blue - in other words, descriptive adjectives. But did you know that there are many other types of adjectives as well? Adjectives
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. A1 - Beginning French • adjectives • agreement • lesson plans
Adjectives Functioning As Adverbs
By definition, adjectives modify nouns. But more than 30 French adjectives can sometimes modify verbs instead, thus taking on the role and characteristics of adverbs, including the fact that they are invariable. adjectives • adverbs • agreement
Adjectives Used as Nouns (Nominal Adjectives)
In both French and English, many adjectives can be used as nouns as a sort of shorthand to reference what you'd otherwise need an adjective + noun to refer to. adjectives • nouns • plurals
Adjectives vs Pronouns
At first glance, adjectives and pronouns might seem to have very little in common, since adjectives are used with nouns, while pronouns replace nouns. But there is an interesting relationship that can help you use both parts of speech more effectively: there are six French adjective / pronoun pairs, where an adjective + noun can be replaced by a corresponding pronoun. adjectives • B1 - Intermediate French • pronouns
Adjectives with Prepositions
When describing someone as capable of doing or determined to do something, a preposition is required between the adjective and verb. In French, the choice of preposition depends on the adjective that precedes it, not the verb that follows. Adverbs of Manner
Adverbs of manner express how the action of a verb occurs. In English, the vast majority of adverbs of manner end in -ly, whereas in French, they mostly end in -ment. They are usually created from adjectives. A2 - Low-Intermediate French • adjectives • adverbs • suffixes
Agreement
Grammatical agreement is a vast topic - and one of the banes of French students. While in English we have a few pronouns and adjectives that indicate gender and number (e.g., he/him/his and she/her/hers), in French, agreement is found in 5 of the 8 parts of speech. adjectives • articles • nouns • pronouns
Agreement with Subjects
The three French verb constructions which include some form of être plus a past participle usually require grammatical agreement of the past participle with the subject. A2 - Low-Intermediate French • adjectives • agreement
Apocopes
adjectives • French Abbreviations - Acronyms - Apocopes • informalities • nouns
Bon vs Bien
The French words bon and bien can be tricky for French students because they both belong to three different parts of speech (adjectives, adverbs, nouns) and have similar meanings. This is a good lesson that will get you well on your way to understanding the difference. adjectives • adverbs • nouns
Color Adjectives
When colors are used as adjectives, they usually need to agree with the nouns they modify in gender and number - but there are some notable exceptions. Des + Adjective
When the French article des directly precedes an adjective, it is supposed to reduce to de. adjectives • articles • formalities • plurals
Demonstrative Adjectives
Demonstrative adjectives (this, that) are used to indicate a specific noun or nouns. In French, they must agree with the noun(s) in number and sometimes gender: ce, cette, cet, ces. A2 - Low-Intermediate French • adjectives • agreement • demonstratives • quick tips
Unlike other French suffixes, -ci does not create new words, but rather adds additional meaning to the nouns and pronouns it's attached to.
