French Nouns And Gender For Beginners
Unlike in English, you have to be concerned about the gender of the nouns you use in your sentences. The gender of the noun determines the adjective or pronoun you use with it, and many nouns have two different forms, depending on whether you are speaking of the male or female. In addition, a word spelled or sounded the same way may have a different meaning, depending on whether it is masculine or feminine. So it is important to pay attention to the article (la, le, un, une)
un aide male assistant
une aide, female assistant
le bal dance
la balle ball
la balle ball
la barre bar (rod)
le barbe barb
la barbe beard
le cache card/mask
la cache cache, hiding place
le capital capital, money
la capitale capital city, capital letter
le casse break-in, robbery
la casse breaking, damage, breakages
le cave (slang) idiot, sucker
la cave basement, cellar
le champagne champagne
la Champagne Champagne region
la Champagne Champagne region
la chaine chain, channel, stereo
la chaine chain, channel, stereo
la chevre goat
le chose thingie, contraption
la chose thing
le col collar, neck
la colle glue
le coq rooster
la coque hull, fuselage
le cours class, course
la cour courtyard
le crepe crepe material
la crepe thin pancake
le critique male critic
la critique criticism, review, female critic
le faune faun
la faune fauna
le fil thread, yarn, string
la file line, queue
le gene gene
la gene trouble, bother
le lac lake
la laque lacquer, shellac
le legume vegetable
la legume (slang) la grosse legume - big shot
le lieu place
la lieue league
la lieue league
la livre pound (money & weight)
le mal evil
la malle trunk
le manoeuvre laborer
la manoeuvre maneuver, operation
le memoire memo, report
la memoire memory
le merci thanks
la merci mercy
la merci mercy
la morale moral (of story), morals
le mort dead body
la mort death
le moule mold
la moule mussel
la moule mussel
la mure blackberry
la mure blackberry
la physique physics
la physique physics
la reine queen
le rose pink (color)
la rose rose (flower)
le roux red, red-head
la roux (soup base)
le sel salt
la selle saddle
la selle saddle
la soie silk
le sol ground, floor, soil
la sole sole (fish)
le tour, turn,
la tour tower
le vague vagueness
la vague wave
le vapeur steamer
la vapeur steam, haze,
la vapeur steam, haze,
la voile sail
Most nouns form their plural by adding "s", just as in English. There are a number of nouns that form their plural differently:
Singular
Plural
Le journal newspaper
journaux
Un couteau
des couteaux
Le reseau
les reseaux
What Did We Learn?
Paying close attention to the article, say the following:
- We are going to a dance/there is a grand ball at the townhall (mairie).
- Let's go the the bar tonight/ the dancer stands at the barre.
- There is a large oak tree in front of that house/I like to watch public T.V.
- The collar of his shirt is white/I need glue to fix (reparer) the plate.
- This course is easy/that courtyard is beautiful.
- I love to eat mussels/he broke (casser) the mold.
- Santa and his reindeers/the Queen of England
- Put the sole on the ground.
- It is your turn to enter the tower.
- That old hat has a veil/that old boat has a sail.
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