Masculine
French: AQA GCSE (2025 Exams), topic 6.4.3
Singular Nouns
Here are some common masculine noun endings that will help you to know that the noun needs 'le' or 'un' before it. There are a few exceptions to every ending.
Masculine
- Nouns ending in b, c, cle, d, k, l, m, oir and p are usually masculine, but there are not that many of them in French.
- Le miel - the honey.
- Le dab - the dab.
- Nouns that also come from English, ending in 'ing' and 'isme', are masculine.
- Le jogging - jogging.
- Le sexisme - sexism.
Nouns ending in 'age'
- Nouns that end in 'age' are usually masculine.
- Le village - the village.
- Le fromage 🧀 - the cheese.
- Le garage - the garage.
- But there are lots of exceptions to this rule:
- la plage - the beach.
- la nage - swimming.
- La cage - cage.
Nouns ending in 'ment'
- Le gouvernement - the government.
- Un appartement -a flat.
- Le commencement the beginning.
- There is one exception to this rule:
- La jument - the mare.
Nouns that end in 'é'
- 'é':
- Le café ☕ - the coffee.
- Le marché - the market.
- Le supermarché - the supermarket.
- The exceptions are:
- La clé 🔑 - the key
- La psyché - psyche
Nouns that end in 'eau'
- Le bateau 🛥️ - the boat.
- Le manteau - the coat.
- Le chapeau 🎩 - the hat
- There are two important exceptions:
- La peau - skin
- L'eau - water.
Nouns ending in 'in'
- Le vin 🍷 - the wine.
- Le magasin - the shop.
- Le jardin - the garden.
- Le chemin - the road, way.
- An exception is:
- La fin - the end.
Singular Nouns
Here are some common masculine noun endings that will help you to know that the noun needs 'le' or 'un' before it. There are a few exceptions to every ending.
Nouns ending in 'on'
- Le salon - the living room.
- Le poisson 🐟 - the fish.
- Le garçon - the boy.
- But there are two very common exceptions:
- La maison 🏠 - the house.
- La boisson🥤 - the drink.
Nouns ending in 'ier' and 'er'
- 'ier':
- le fermier - the farmer.
- l’épicier -a grocer.
- Le cahier the notebook.
- 'Er':
- Le boucher - the butcher.
- Le boulanger - the baker
- A lot of professions, when talking about men, end in 'ier' or 'er'.
Nouns that end in 'eur'
- L'aspirateur - the vaccum cleaner.
- L'ascenseur - the lift.
- Le chauffeur - the chauffeur.
- The exceptions are:
- La douleur - the pain.
- La chaleur - the heat.
Nouns that end in 'oir'
- Le miroir - the mirror.
- Le devoir - the duty, homework.
- Le pouvoir - the power.
Test yourself on Masculine
How do you say 'a cheese' in French?
How do you say 'the hat' in French?
How do you say 'a fish' in French?