Adjective agreement and position: Grammar in context
French adjectives must agree in gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural) with the noun they describe, and most adjectives are placed after the noun, unlike in English. The feminine is usually formed by adding -e to the masculine (grand becomes grande), the plural by adding -s (grand becomes grands), and a set of common adjectives has irregular feminine and/or plural forms that must be learned individually, such as beau/belle, blanc/blanche, long/longue and gentil/gentille.
Before you start
No specific prerequisites - this is a good place to start.
Method
- Start from the masculine singular form given in a dictionary, then work out what the noun needs: masculine or feminine, singular or plural.
- Form the regular feminine by adding -e to the masculine (intéressant becomes intéressante); if the masculine already ends in -e, the feminine is identical (rouge stays rouge, jeune stays jeune).
- Form the regular plural by adding -s (grand becomes grands, grande becomes grandes); if the masculine already ends in -s or -x, it does not change in the plural (heureux stays heureux).
- Learn the common irregular feminines: beau becomes belle, nouveau becomes nouvelle, vieux becomes vieille, blanc becomes blanche, long becomes longue, doux becomes douce, faux becomes fausse, gentil becomes gentille, bon becomes bonne, gros becomes grosse, favori becomes favorite.
- Learn the special forms used before a masculine singular noun starting with a vowel or silent h: beau becomes bel, nouveau becomes nouvel, vieux becomes vieil, as in un bel homme, un vieil ami.
- Place most adjectives after the noun (une robe bleue, un livre intéressant), but put the small set of common short adjectives before the noun: beau, joli, grand, petit, jeune, vieux, nouveau, bon, mauvais, gros, long, premier, dernier, as in une jolie maison, un petit chien.
- Remember that a few adjectives change meaning depending on position: un ancien professeur (a former teacher) versus un professeur ancien (an old/elderly teacher); un grand homme (a great man) versus un homme grand (a tall man).
Worked example
Rewrite each phrase with the adjective correctly agreed and positioned: (a) une (nouveau) voiture (b) des (chemise, blanc) (c) un (petit) (garçon) intelligent (d) une (vieux) (maison).
- (a) 'nouveau' describes a feminine noun (une voiture), so it becomes nouvelle, and as a BAGS adjective it goes before the noun: une nouvelle voiture.
- (b) 'chemise' is feminine plural, so 'blanc' must agree: blanc becomes blanche (feminine), then blanches (plural); blanc is not a BAGS adjective, so it goes after the noun: des chemises blanches.
- (c) 'petit' is a BAGS adjective (size), so it goes before the noun and agrees with the masculine singular garçon: un petit garçon; 'intelligent' is not a BAGS adjective, so it stays after: un petit garçon intelligent.
- (d) 'vieux' describes a feminine noun (une maison), so use the regular feminine form vieille, placed before the noun as a BAGS adjective: une vieille maison.
Practice questions
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Q1Give the feminine singular of 'blanc'.Show answer
Answer: blanche.
Q2Give the masculine plural of 'heureux'.Show answer
Answer: heureux (unchanged, since it already ends in x).
Q3Complete: J'ai une soeur ______ (intelligent).Show answer
Answer: intelligente.
Q4Does 'joli' go before or after the noun?Show answer
Answer: Before, because it is a BAGS adjective describing beauty.
Q5Correct the error: 'un chien noire'.Show answer
Answer: un chien noir, because 'chien' is masculine, so no -e is needed.
Q6Give the correct form of 'beau' before 'homme' (masculine singular, starting with a vowel).Show answer
Answer: bel (un bel homme).
Q7Translate: 'a new school' (feminine noun, use nouveau).Show answer
Answer: une nouvelle école.
Q8What does 'un ancien élève' mean, compared with 'un élève ancien'?Show answer
Answer: 'Un ancien élève' means a former pupil, while 'un élève ancien' would mean an old or aged pupil; the position of ancien changes its meaning.
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE French exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Translate this passage into French: My best friend has a new house. It is a big white house with a beautiful garden. Her little brother is very funny but sometimes lazy.
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Write about 40 words in French describing a family member. You must mention: their name and age, two physical or personality adjectives correctly agreed, and one thing they like doing.
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See real GCSE French past-paper questions, with official mark schemes →
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