NOUN / LE SUBSTANTIF

A noun is a word that names a person, place, thing, or idea.Every French noun has gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural).

 

GENDER / LE GENRE

• Most nouns, including proper nouns, have a fixed gender: la lettre(letter), le Mexique(Mexico)

  Common endings that usually indicate gender:

  Masculine: -age, -ail, -eau, -ent, -ier, -isme

  Feminine: -esse, -ette, -ie, -ion, -té, -ure

• Nouns with inherent gender, whether biological or social, usually respect that gender: la mère(mother), le père(father), la bonne(maid), le chauffeur(driver).

• Some words differ in gender only: le Bourgogne(Burgundy, the wine), la Bourgogne(Burgundy, the region); le mémoire(memoir), la mémoire(memory).

• Some nouns—especially animals, occupations, and nationalities—change in form and in gender to fit their usage.

  1. Many undergo regular changes based on endings:

  2. Some changes are irregular: le taureau(bull) → la vache(cow)

Masculine Ending		Feminine Ending		Example
"majority*		add –e		I'ami (mj → I'amie if) I'Anglais (m) → I'Anglaise (f)
-n		-nne		le Parisien → la Parisienne
-t		-tte		le chal → la chatte
-er		-ère		un étranger → une étrangère
-eur		-euse		le vendeur → la vendeuse
-teur		-trice		I'acteur → I'actrice
-el -eau		-elle		Michel → /Michelle le jumeau → la jumelle

1. Some nouns are either always masculine or always feminine, regardless of the gender of the person they designate:

   Always masculine: I'auteur(author), le docteur(doctor), I'échvain(writer), le médedn(doctor), le peintre (painter), le poète (poet), le professeur(professor, teacher). Note:To indicate or insist that the person is female, add the word femme une: femme écrivain (a (woman] writer). Colloquially, these are sometimes feminized: la professeur.

   Always feminine: la personne(person), la connaissance(acquaintance), la victime(victim).

2. A mixed-gender group of nouns is grammatically masculine: Julie et Pierre sont jumeaux.vs. Anne et Claire sont étudiantes.

 

NUMBER / LE NOMBRE

1. Most nouns form plurals from their singular forms:

Singular Ending		Plural Ending		Example
"majority*		add-s		le livre → les livres
-s -x -z		no change		le tapis → les tapis la voix → les voix le nez → les nez
-au (-eau) -eu (oeu)		add-x		le noyau → les noyaux le voeu → les voeux
-al		-aux		le cheval → les chevaux

1. Exceptions

   1. Some plurals are irregular: l'oeil → les yeux; le travail→ les travaux; le ciel → les cieux

   2. 7 nouns ending in-ouadd-xin the plural; all others add-s: le bijou, le caillou, le chou, le genou, le hibou, le joujou, le pou.

   3. Plurals of compound (hyphenated) nouns should be checked in a dictionary. In general, the adjective or noun components take plural markings; all other components remain fixed, le grand-père → les grandspères; le couvre-lit → les couvre-lits.

   4. Proper names are invariable: les Fontaine(the Fontaine family).

2. Some nouns only exist or are only used in the plural: les moeurs(cultural customs); les vacances(vacation).