Masculine
French: Edexcel IGCSE, topic 8.4.3
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?