Day 10 · A1 · Lesson 10
Adjectives that agree
French describing words change to match the noun: masculine or feminine, one or several. Learn the patterns, where adjectives go (usually after the noun), the three shapeshifters beau, nouveau and vieux, and colours and clothes to practise on.
Cold guess
Before any rules, pick the version that sounds right. Your score is private. You'll get a fresh set at the end to compare.
a small table
a red car
She's tall.
They're tall. (women)
a black dress
a beautiful hotel
happy (a woman)
orange shoes
grands: the s is…
a good idea
Score: / 10
Why it matters
In English, “small” is “small” whatever it describes. In French, a describing word changes to match the noun: masculine or feminine, one or several. And you can often hear it.
un petit café · une petite table
des petits cafés · des petites tables
Petit (p'tee) and petite (p'teet) sound different. The plural -s is silent.
une rouge voiture · une voiture rouge
Most French adjectives come after the noun, the opposite of English.
This is where Lesson 5 pays off. Every adjective needs to know whether its noun is masculine or feminine, so every gender clue you learned there now does double duty.
Describing things
1. The four forms of an adjective
Most adjectives have four forms. The pattern is simple: -e for feminine, -s for plural.
| Masculine | Feminine | |
|---|---|---|
| One | grand (grahn) | grande (grahnd) |
| Several | grands (grahn) | grandes (grahnd) |
The -e makes the last consonant speak (Lesson 1). The -s is silent, so grand and grands sound identical.
An adjective agrees whether it sits next to the noun or comes after être: une grande maison, la maison est grande.
Mixed genders take the masculine plural: une jupe et un pull noirs (a black skirt and sweater). It’s the same old-fashioned rule as Lesson 4’s ils for a mixed group.
2. Making an adjective feminine
| Pattern | Examples | Watch |
|---|---|---|
| add -e | petit → petite · bleu → bleue · français → française | the last consonant is now heard |
| already ends in -e | jeune, rouge, drôle, facile, sympathique | no change at all |
| double the consonant, add -e | bon → bonne · canadien → canadienne · naturel → naturelle · gentil → gentille · violet → violette · gros → grosse | complet → complète, inquiet → inquiète, secret → secrète |
| -er, -ier → -ère, -ière | cher → chère · premier → première · dernier → dernière | add the grave accent |
| -f → -ve | sportif → sportive · neuf → neuve · actif → active | |
| -x → -se | heureux → heureuse · jaloux → jalouse · sérieux → sérieuse | faux → fausse, roux → rousse, doux → douce |
| -c → -que | public → publique · turc → turque | grec → grecque |
| irregular | blanc → blanche · long → longue · sec → sèche · frais → fraîche | learn these as pairs |
3. Making an adjective plural
Most just add a silent -s. A few endings behave like the nouns in Lesson 6:
| Ending | Plural | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| most | + s (silent) | petit → petits · bleue → bleues |
| -s, -x | no change | un pull gris → des pulls gris · il est heureux → ils sont heureux |
| -eau | + x | beau → beaux · nouveau → nouveaux |
| -al | → -aux (masculine only) | normal → normaux · national → nationaux (but banals, fatals, navals; feminine is regular: normales) |
4. Where the adjective goes
Most adjectives go after the noun: colours, nationalities, shapes, and most long words. Une voiture rouge, un film canadien, une idée intéressante.
A small group of very common, short adjectives go before the noun. English teachers sum them up as BAGS:
| BAGS | Adjectives | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Beauty | beau, joli | une jolie robe, un beau jardin |
| Age | jeune, vieux, nouveau | un jeune homme, une nouvelle voiture |
| Goodness | bon, mauvais | une bonne idée, un mauvais film |
| Size | grand, petit, gros, long | une grande maison, un petit chien |
Des becomes de before an adjective. In careful French, when the adjective comes first, the plural article shrinks: de beaux jours, de nouvelles chaussures. After the noun, des stays: des fleurs rouges. (In casual speech you’ll hear des in both, and it isn’t wrong, but de is what an exam expects.)
A few adjectives change meaning depending on where they sit (un grand homme is a great man, un homme grand is a tall one). That’s a later lesson (B1); for now, BAGS before, everything else after.
5. The three shapeshifters
Beau, nouveau and vieux have a special form for masculine nouns that start with a vowel or silent h. It stops two vowels clashing:
| Masc. + consonant | Masc. + vowel | Feminine | Masc. plural | Fem. plural | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| beautiful | un beau jardin | un bel hôtel | une belle maison | de beaux jardins | de belles maisons |
| new | un nouveau livre | un nouvel ami | une nouvelle robe | de nouveaux livres | de nouvelles robes |
| old | un vieux pull | un vieil homme | une vieille veste | de vieux pulls | de vieilles vestes |
Notice that bel, nouvel, vieil sound exactly like the feminine forms. Your ear already knows them.
6. Colours and clothes
Colours are adjectives, so they go after the noun and most of them agree:
| Behaviour | Colours | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| agree fully | noir, blanc/blanche, vert, bleu, gris, violet/violette | une robe noire, des chaussures blanches |
| already -e, add -s for plural | rouge, jaune, rose, beige | des pulls rouges, une veste jaune |
| never change | orange, marron (named after a fruit and a chestnut) | des chaussures orange, des sacs marron |
| two-word colours never change | bleu clair, vert foncé, gris foncé | une veste bleu clair |
un pantalon (trousers) · une chemise (shirt) · un pull (sweater) · une robe (dress) · une jupe (skirt) · une veste (jacket) · un manteau (coat) · un chapeau (hat) · des chaussures (f, shoes) · des bottes (f, boots)
Notice un pantalon: French trousers are singular. In Québec you'll also hear une tuque for a winter hat.
Examples
- Un petit café et une petite crêpe, s'il vous plaît.A small coffee and a small crêpe, please. (petit / petite)
- Il est grand. Elle est grande.He's tall. She's tall. (you hear the d in grande)
- J'ai une voiture rouge.I have a red car. (colour after the noun)
- C'est un film canadien très intéressant.It's a very interesting Canadian film. (both after)
- Elle porte une robe noire et des bottes blanches.She's wearing a black dress and white boots.
- C'est un bel hôtel.It's a beautiful hotel. (beau → bel before a vowel)
- Mon nouvel appartement est petit.My new apartment is small. (nouvel before a vowel)
- J'ai de nouveaux voisins.I have new neighbours. (des → de before the adjective)
- Une veste et un pull noirs.A black jacket and sweater. (mixed: masculine plural)
- C'est une bonne idée !That's a good idea! (bon → bonne, before the noun)
- Ma grand-mère est très gentille.My grandmother is very kind. (gentil → gentille)
- Il porte une veste bleu foncé.He's wearing a dark blue jacket. (two-word colour: no change)
- Elle est heureuse et sportive.She's happy and sporty. (-eux → -euse, -if → -ive)
Memory tricks
The -e makes it speakGrand (grahn) → grande (grahnd). Petit (p'tee) → petite (p'teet). If you can hear the last consonant, it's probably feminine.
The plural whispersGrand and grands sound the same. Listen to the article (le / les, un / des) to hear the plural, exactly as in Lesson 6.
BAGS go in frontBeauty, Age, Goodness, Size: beau, jeune, vieux, nouveau, bon, mauvais, grand, petit. They're short, common, and they like to lead.
Bel, nouvel, vieil are smooth talkersThey only appear before a masculine vowel, to avoid a clash: un bel ami, un vieil homme. And they sound just like belle, nouvelle, vieille.
Colours named after things don't changeOrange is a fruit, marron is a chestnut. Things don't agree with other things: des chaussures orange.
-eux becomes a happy zHeureux → heureuse. The x turns into an s that buzzes like a z, and you can hear the happiness.
Doubling is the nasal switchBon → bonne, canadien → canadienne: the same switch as Lesson 1. Double the n, the nasal turns off.
French trousers are one thingUn pantalon, singular. Say "des pantalons" and you're talking about several pairs.
Don’t get French fried
Make it match
Feminine forms, then plurals, then where the adjective goes. The clue in brackets is the English.
Elle est ___.
(small)
Add -e for feminine. Now you hear the t.
Ils sont ___.
(small)
Masculine plural: add a silent -s.
une ___ idée
(good)
-on → -onne. Idée is feminine (-ée).
Elle est ___.
(sporty)
-f → -ve.
Elle est ___.
(kind)
-il → -ille: the l doubles.
Elle est ___.
(worried)
Most -et words double the t, but inquiet, complet and secret take -ète.
une chemise ___
(white)
Irregular: blanc → blanche.
une ___ journée
(long)
Irregular: long → longue.
des résultats ___
(normal)
-al → -aux in the masculine plural.
de ___ gâteaux
(beautiful)
-eau → -eaux in the plural.
un ___ appartement
(new)
Before a masculine noun starting with a vowel, nouveau becomes nouvel.
une ___ maison
(old)
vieux → vieille in the feminine.
des voitures ___
(red)
Rouge already ends in -e, but it still takes -s in the plural.
des sacs ___
(brown)
Marron is named after a thing (the chestnut), so it never changes.
une veste ___
(light blue)
Two-word colours never change.
Where does intéressant go?
Most adjectives go after: un livre intéressant.
Where does petit go?
Size: it's one of the BAGS adjectives that go before.
une jupe et un pull ___
(black)
Mixed genders take the masculine plural.
petite: the t is…
The -e wakes up the t (Lesson 1).
Score: / 19
The whole lesson on one card
| Four forms | grand · grande · grands · grandes (only the -e changes the sound) |
|---|---|
| Feminine: add -e | petit → petite · bleu → bleue · already -e, no change: jeune, rouge, drôle |
| Feminine: double, then -e | bon → bonne · canadien → canadienne · naturel → naturelle · gentil → gentille · violet → violette (but complet → complète, inquiet → inquiète) |
| Feminine: swap the ending | cher → chère · premier → première · sportif → sportive · heureux → heureuse · public → publique |
| Irregular | blanc → blanche · long → longue · sec → sèche · frais → fraîche · faux → fausse · doux → douce |
| Plural | add a silent -s · words in -s, -x stay: gris, heureux · beau → beaux · normal → normaux · mixed genders → masculine plural |
| Position | most go after: une voiture rouge · BAGS go before: beau, joli, jeune, vieux, nouveau, bon, mauvais, grand, petit, gros, long · de beaux jours |
| Shapeshifters | beau / bel / belle · nouveau / nouvel / nouvelle · vieux / vieil / vieille (bel, nouvel, vieil before a masculine vowel) |
| Colours | most agree: bleue, noires, blanches · never change: orange, marron, bleu clair, vert foncé |
Your turn to talk
Describe what you're wearing right now, out loud, with a colour for every item. Then describe a friend's outfit, and check every adjective matches.
Did it stick?
A fresh set. Each answer tells you why.
Il est ___.
(happy)
Masculine: heureux.
Elle est ___.
(happy)
-eux → -euse.
Elles sont ___.
(French)
Feminine plural: française + s.
un ___ homme
(handsome)
Homme starts with a silent h, so beau → bel.
un ___ livre
(new)
Livre starts with a consonant, so plain nouveau.
des chaussures ___
(white)
Chaussures is feminine plural: blanches.
une ___ voiture
(new)
Feminine: nouvelle.
a big house
Size adjectives go before (BAGS).
an interesting book
Most adjectives go after.
des pantalons ___
(dark green)
Two-word colours never change.
C'est une voiture ___.
(expensive)
-er → -ère.
J'ai ___ nouveaux voisins.
I have new neighbours. (careful French)
Before an adjective, des usually becomes de in careful French.
Score: / 12