2. We say that “all adjectives in French agree in gender and
number with the nouns they modify”. What does that really
mean?
Gender refers to whether the noun is masculine or feminine.
We have already studied this with articles:
la voiture- feminine le livre- masculine
Number refers to whether the noun is singular or plural:
les voitures les livres
In English we just have one definite article “the” which we us e
with any noun singular or plural.
3. Certain adjectives in French are called “possessive” because they
indicate that the noun is owned or possessed by someone.
These adjectives also agree in gender and number with the
nouns they modify.
Ce sont ses livres=They are his books
C’est mon livre= It’s my book
In French we can also indicate possession by using “de” + the
persons name:
C’est le livre de Marc= It’s Mark’s book
!!!APOSTROPHE –S-(‘S) DOES NOT EXIST IN FRENCH !!!!
4. French English
mon, ma, mes my
ton, ta, tes your
son, sa, ses his/her
notre, nos our
votre, vos your (formal or plural)
leur, leur s their
********Note that for our, your, and their there is no masculine
or feminine form, just singular and plural***********
5. As with any instrument or sport or new skill that you try to
master you must practice often to master it. Yes you can look
at it before the test or quiz and remember it for an hour…but for
it to exist permanently in your long-term memory you need to
practice it frequently and for a period of time.
Click on the links below to practice possessive adjectives:
http://www.quia.com/pop/9348.html?AP_rand=1968424394
http://www.quia.com/hm/71113.html
6. Some adjectives describe the noun they modify and again in
French there are different form s depending upon the gender
and number of the nouns they are describing. The rules below
will help you to form them correctly:
For most adjectives you add an –e- to make them feminine and
an –s- to make them plural.
Le garçon intelligent = the smart boy
Les filles intelligentes = the smart girls
7. However some do not follow this rule, but they can still be
learned according to their endings:
Masculine form s/p Feminine form s/p
Mon copain est sportif Ma copine est sportive
Mes copains sont sportifs Mes copines sont sportives
Mon frère est parrasseux Ma soeur est parrasseuse
Mes frères sont parrasseux Mes soeurs sont parrasseuses
http://www.quia.com/cb/66960.html
8. Masculine s/p Feminine s/p
beau & * bel /beaux belle/ belles
vieux,*vieil /vieux vieille/vieilles
nouveau,*nouvel nouvelle/nouvelles
*These forms are masculine singular used before a vowel.
In order to practice these go to your course in “My Courses” and
do the BME’s # 23,24 & 25