Agreement (2/3)
French: Edexcel IGCSE, topic 8.8.2
Irregular Agrrements
Some adjectives have irregular agreements. This means you don't add just 'es' or 's' for plural nouns.
Ending in 'x'
- When adjectives end in 'x' in the masculine singular, the feminine singular is 'se'.
- Masculine singular: heureux (happy)
- Feminine singular: heureuse
- The masculine plural is 'x', the feminine plural is 'ses'.
- Masculine plural: dangeureux (dangerous)
- Feminine plural: dangereuses
- Notice that the masculine singular and plural are the same.
Ending in 'on', 'en', 'el', 'il'
- When adjectives end in 'on', 'en', 'el' or 'il' in the masculine singular, the feminine singular is 'ne' or 'le'.
- Masculine singular: bon (good)
- Feminine singular: bonne
- The masculine plural is 's', the feminine plural is 'nes' or 'les'.
- Masculine plural: gentils (kind)
- Feminine plural: gentilles
Ending in 'er'
- When adjectives end in 'er' in the masculine singular, the feminine singular is 'ère'.
- Masculine singular: premier (first)
- Feminine singular: première
- The masculine plural is 's', the feminine plural is 'ères'.
- Masculine plural: derniers (last)
- Feminine plural: dernières
Ending in 'f'
- When adjectives end in 'f' in the masculine singular, the feminine singular is 've'.
- Masculine singular: sportif (sporty)
- Feminine singular: sportive
- The masculine plural is 's', the feminine plural is 'ves'.
- Masculine plural: agressifs (aggressive)
- Feminine plural: agresives
Ending in 'c'
- When adjectives end in 'c' in the masculine singular, the feminine singular is 'he'.
- Masculine singular: blanc (white)
- Feminine singular: blanche
- The masculine plural is 's', the feminine plural is 'hes'.
- Masculine plural: francs (frank)
- Feminine plural: franches
Adjectives Must Agree
Adjectives are describing words. In French, adjectives agree with the gender (masculine/feminine) and the quantity (singular/plural) of the noun.
Singular
- When the noun is masculine singular, the adjective is not changed.
- When the noun is feminine singular you normally add an 'e', (unless it already has an 'e').
- Le film intéressant - the interesting film.
- La piste intéressante - the interesting approach.
Plural
- When the noun is masculine plural you just add an 's' to the adjective.
- When the noun is feminine plural you add 'es' to the adjective.
- Les films intéressants - the interesting films.
- Les pistes intéressantes - the interesting approaches.
Test yourself on Agreement (2/3)
Which adjective can complete this sentence?
'Jessica est très...'Which of the following adjectives would have '-ves' for the feminine plural ending?
Complete the following sentence:
La géographie est ...