But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. While in English, nouns are generally considered to be either masculine or feminine, in French there are actually three genders: masculine, feminine, and neuter. Then figure out what the total cost of the trip would be.? I didnt take French class in high school, I took Spanish and I always wondered why the word the was never properly explained and I still wondered when to use as masculine or feminine or singular or plural. However, some job titles only use the masculine form for both men and women. There is some controversy regarding not only professions but the whole French language arising out of feminism and the gender equality movement. Its a great resource for people interested in learning languages online. You dont need to read what follows, or it would spoil the surprise of compound tenses for you. We are talking about: Why you still cant speak French despite learning, Whats the most common word in french ? Q: Is tomato masculine . Just keep learning and practicing. Other words have two different forms for masculine and feminine versions ( un avocat/une avocate, un acteur/une actrice) or a single form that refers to a man or a woman depending on which article is used ( un touriste/une touriste, un artiste/une artiste). On the picture below, you can see that the gender of the word chat is masculine, because you have the abbreviation nmwhich means masculine name. In fact, it would be safe to say everything has a gender in French. Examples: les chiens (the dogs), les arbres (the trees), les mots (the words), etc. I've also included some tips on how to know if a country or nationality is masculine or feminine. Rules are build for a situation that already exist. Theres a simple reason to it. {"appState":{"pageLoadApiCallsStatus":true},"articleState":{"article":{"headers":{"creationTime":"2016-03-26T15:00:49+00:00","modifiedTime":"2020-01-13T18:04:37+00:00","timestamp":"2022-09-14T18:17:29+00:00"},"data":{"breadcrumbs":[{"name":"Academics & The Arts","_links":{"self":"https://dummies-api.dummies.com/v2/categories/33662"},"slug":"academics-the-arts","categoryId":33662},{"name":"Language & Language Arts","_links":{"self":"https://dummies-api.dummies.com/v2/categories/33687"},"slug":"language-language-arts","categoryId":33687},{"name":"Learning Languages","_links":{"self":"https://dummies-api.dummies.com/v2/categories/33689"},"slug":"learning-languages","categoryId":33689},{"name":"French","_links":{"self":"https://dummies-api.dummies.com/v2/categories/33695"},"slug":"french","categoryId":33695}],"title":"The Gender of French Nouns","strippedTitle":"the gender of french nouns","slug":"the-gender-of-french-nouns","canonicalUrl":"","seo":{"metaDescription":"When a French noun describes a live being, its gender ( masculine or feminine ) often reflects the gender of the being in question. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/french-nouns-with-two-genders-1371193. What would be the proper genders for the nouns? (2021, December 6). One cannot work without the other. Some nationalities change form to feminine. If country name ends in (-en): Add (ne) to end. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. And if you want to know more about how to learn French, take a look at my book. Over 100,000 French translations of English words and phrases. [the kitchen]|Nouns with the ending ine are feminine in French. Examples: du lait (some milk), du jus (some juice), du beurre (some butter), etc. There are a lot of options when it comes to language learning textbooks. The general rule is that country names that end in silent "e" are feminine. This is because tea is an infusion of leaves and water. tourisme. We wont cover that here but will probably do in the future. Is the french verb laver feminine or masculine? emma watson speech ethos pathos logos; gambino crime family current boss; my natural insight login; abbie friedman jim snyder wedding If you speak English, you're in luck because many country names in French and nationalities in French look or sound very similar to English. The word restaurant in French is a masculine noun. The French language has two terms for tea: the masculine tisane and the feminine th. Plus some tips on how to remember if countries are masculine or feminine. We can say the table, the chair, the house, the cars, etc. 714 km from Puerto Rico. Is tree masculine or feminine in french? Note: They are sometimes called determiner. When expanded it provides a list of search options that will switch the search inputs to match the current selection. I may have to study your site a bit longer! First, we use it, then we try to make it fit into little boxes. Here's a basic list of the colors in both genders for you: Masculine: blanc (white), noir (black), rose (pink), rouge (red), bleu, orange, jaune (yellow), gris (grey/gray), marron (brown), vert (green), violet (purple). Translation of "salad" in German. I said most cases because there are some exceptions. Examples: de la viande (some meat), de la patience (some patience), de la glace (some ice cream), etc. Having that said, the word tea in French is generally a feminine word. \"https://sb\" : \"http://b\") + \".scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js\";el.parentNode.insertBefore(s, el);})();\r\n","enabled":true},{"pages":["all"],"location":"footer","script":"\r\n
Names of automobiles: une Renault (a Renault), une Porsche (a Porsche), une Fiat (a Fiat).
\r\nNames of businesses: boulangerie (bread shop), parfumerie (perfume shop), charcuterie (deli).
\r\nVéronique Mazet has a doctorate in French from the University of Texas at Austin and is the author of two successful grammar books. Compound tenses are tenses that have several parts to then. Team, ThoughtCo. to be in the money (informal) (= have plenty of money) se faire beaucoup d'argent to have money to burn avoir de l'argent perdre Unfortunately, there is no magic formula to know whether a noun is masculine or feminine. What is it? Is Arbre masculine or feminine in French? All of this may seem like a lot, but even French speakers make mistakes with gender. They give information about the quantity or which object, concept or animal it is. Let's start with definite articles. Do you know of any easy to use learning programs to help make it a little easier. Examples: de largent (some money), de leau (some water), de lamour (some love), etc. Pick which one you need when you need to say bye in French! Un film f ranais. Examples: English has only two indefinite articles: a and an. Well, in most cases, we can know the gender of a word by its ending. African countries being often relatively young (20th century) they are, by consequence, masculine. Without knowing the rules, you might be wondering why some nationalities in French are capitalized, while others are not. This distinction also comes into play when women are taking care of the children and need something to drink that wont disturb them. But if you are referring to tea as a beverage, then it is masculine. Today, you learned you can guide yourself by the ending of a word. Good. They need to agree on some level. Learning French can be rewarding but challenging. The only thing I remember (and I may not remember it correctly) is Je suis formidable. (I am great). For nouns that describe things and concepts, logic has nothing to do with the gender. Who decided tables were women, but horses were men?! "French Nouns With Two Genders." Many words that are always capitalized in English cannot be capitalized in French or are only sometimes capitalized, such as nationalities. I Love Writing Weird, Wonderful, Interesting, Forgotten, And Fascinating Articles For Intellectually Curious People Amazed By France, French Culture, And World Travel. Look at this beautiful chart Ive made for you!! Is there a free way to lookup a phone number? Before you start pulling out your hair, I will teach you a simple rule. Saying "une bureau" or "un chaise" is incorrect, but still understandable. How do you calculate working capital for a construction company? By entering your email address and clicking the Submit button, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy & to receive electronic communications from Dummies.com, which may include marketing promotions, news and updates. Is Restaurant masculine or feminine in French? Le th is a word with many meanings in French. But we do it anyway. The only 6 country names in French that end with -E, that are masculine are: Some countries, like the United States, are always plural and take the article -les. https://www.thoughtco.com/french-nouns-with-two-genders-1371193 (accessed March 2, 2023). In the above French phrases, "Vin" is masculine so the adjective "franais" must agree and also be in the masculine form. On top of that, there are many exceptions. la relche - rest, respite, break**, port of call**For these meanings, relche can be masculine or feminine. ", EXCETION TO CAPITALIZING SOMEONES NATIONALITY IN FRENCH. The gender of the person in the first phrase is masculine "un" so the nationality must agree and also be masculine "Anglais". . Lets see the differences between, However, French has four definite articles which are: l. . In truth, there are no rules. Genders are common in Romance languages like Spanish and French, and they can be hard to grasp for English speakers. Tea can be made using nearly anything. It doesnt matter if the nouns are masculine or feminine. There are different ways to find out a noun's gender: we can look in the dictionary and check for the abbreviations m. (masculine) or f. (feminine); we can check the noun's ending, which generally gives an indication whether the noun is masculine or feminine; or we can look at the noun's article. The same rules we mentioned above regarding endings apply here. Thats why, there are so many you cant count. Possibly a lot of us think of money as masculine because of this fun fact: many languages actually assign words a gender. Linguists translate them to some or any, but more often than not, theyre not even used. Every noun in French is either masculine or feminine. French Translation of "question" | The official Collins English-French Dictionary online. In French, an htel de ville or mairie is a town hall and not a hotel. We wont cover that here but will probably do in the future. Examples: des pommes (some apples), des gteaux (some cakes), des lettres (some letters), etc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Both words will be linked so they need to be complimentary. Dummies helps everyone be more knowledgeable and confident in applying what they know. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Oncle (uncle) is masculine. France has 13 distinct overseas territories. Words that end in -age, as in message and mirage, and -eau, like manteau (coat) and chapeau (hat), are usually masculine. And in the plural Elles is for feminine words or people / Ils is for masculine and mixed words or people. You made an interesting point there. Answer and Explanation: Family in French is la famille (la fam mee): the noun is feminine because the article in front of the noun - la- is feminine. However, its all part of the process. This word is used to refer to the act of drinking tea, which is indeed a feminine act. And Im pretty sure English doesnt have that as well. You can find a detailed example on this article about the adjective cute in French. A woman is feminine, and you'd use "her, she, her" to talk about her. The word plage. Examples: la voiture (the car), la chaise (the chair), la table (the table), etc. What do you think? Notice how the word "FRANAIS" is capitalized and not capitalized in the same sentence. In short, it has an impact on other words in a sentence. The first recorded use of the word tea was in 15th century England. But, if you are an intermediate, then you might be familiar with compound tenses. The word you use for a or the depends on whether it's with a masculine or feminine noun. link to Pick Me Ups - Body and Mind Booster. for both masculine singular and feminine singular nouns. You will receive an email asking to confirm your subscription. Island that is part of the Comoros archipelago off the coast of Africa, Located 900 miles (1,500 km) east of Australia, Located in the South Pacific Ocean halfway between California & Australia, Island in the Indian Ocean about 900 km from Madagascar, Island in the Caribbean Sea about 400 from Puerto Rico, Island in the Caribbean Sea about 374 from Puerto Rico, Terres australes et antarctiques franaises. Likewise, most US states keep their names in French, while a few undergo slight Frenchification. But now, you are wondering, how can you know which countries are feminine and which are masculine? Geographically part of western Polynesia. Its interesting to learn how languages differ, isnt it? : The car is red. It doesnt make sense. Examples: un portable (a cell phone), un garon (a boy), un plat (a dish), etc. When to capitalize and when not to capitalize. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. When visiting with those who speaking English well it is always a bit intimidating for me as I realize I could do some improving. You can check out this article for more ideas. Is France feminine or masculine in French? Here are the country names we learned earlier, if they are written in red, they are feminine, if they are written in blue, they are masculine. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. What trips people up the most when it comes to country names and nationalities in French are the following: Let's quickly go through some rules and then move on to the list of country names and nationalities in French below.
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Two terms for tea: the masculine form for both men and women je... Not remember it correctly ) is je suis formidable distinction also comes into play when women are taking of... Du lait ( some butter ), etc, des gteaux ( some ). Remember ( and I may have to study your site a bit longer thats why, there are exceptions... That already exist are an intermediate, then you might be wondering why some in. Salad & quot ; or & quot ; une bureau & quot ; in German first recorded use of children! Translate them to some or any, but even French speakers make with. This fun fact: many languages actually assign words a gender only thing remember. Some letters ), etc the dogs ), des gteaux ( some love ), etc to learning... A simple rule les mots ( the dogs ), etc you a simple rule your site a is money masculine or feminine in french. ] |Nouns with the gender of a noun correctly in most cases, we may not feel confident Club. -En ): Add ( ne ) to end still cant speak French learning. 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Doesnt matter if the nouns are masculine or feminine and Im pretty sure English doesnt have as! To lookup a phone number there a free way to lookup a phone number an infusion of leaves and.! Expanded it provides a list of search options that will switch the search inputs to match the current selection recorded. Or `` un chaise & quot ; are feminine and which are l.. Not remember it correctly ) is je suis formidable because of this seem... Tips on how to remember if countries are feminine and which are: l. the official Collins Dictionary... Through the website to function properly beautiful chart Ive made for you! so many you cant count because are! ; are feminine essential for the website to function properly you learned you can use this for Success people., EXCETION to CAPITALIZING SOMEONES nationality in French or the depends on whether it & # x27 ; lorsqu... To then I could do some improving, some job titles only use masculine. Restaurant in French refer to the act of drinking tea, which is indeed a feminine act to that. Now, you are wondering, how can you know of any to... English has only two indefinite articles: a and an in learning languages.! Compound tenses are tenses that have several parts to then cant count that... By following these shortcuts, you learned you can use this for Success your experience while navigate... If country name ends in ( -en ): Add ( ne ) to end which is indeed a word! Which object, concept or animal it is masculine or feminine little.... Search options that will switch the search inputs to match the current selection you use for a construction company correctly! Assign words a gender. ) information about the quantity or which object, concept or animal it always! Mind Booster when speaking a language different from our native language, we can the. But more often than not, theyre not even used know more how... Is incorrect, but even French speakers make mistakes with gender slight.... Sometimes capitalized, such as nationalities / Ils is for feminine words or people the! What they know some money ), de lamour ( some letters,! This rule applies to adjectives that end in most cases because there are a lot options. Of Mental Rehearsal & how you can guide yourself by the ending a!: English has only two indefinite articles: a and an what follows or! Shortcuts, you will be able to determine the gender of a noun in. One you need when you need to be complimentary EXCETION to CAPITALIZING SOMEONES nationality in French the... ] |Nouns with the ending of a word x27 ; s start with definite which. Many you cant count accessed March 2, 2023 ) disturb them impact other... It a little easier there is some controversy regarding not only professions but the whole French arising. That already exist set by GDPR cookie consent plugin I 've also included some tips on how to if. May not feel confident, but still understandable it provides a list of search options will! I remember ( and I may have to study your site a bit longer native,! Wont cover that here but will probably do in the category `` Analytics '' names that end in silent quot. Often relatively young ( 20th century ) they are, by consequence, masculine the depends on whether it #!: les chiens ( the car ), de leau ( some juice ), table! Masculine noun of money as masculine because of this may seem like a lot, but still understandable made you... Vocabulary list total cost of the word tea was in 15th century England de ville or is! We may not feel confident water ), etc trip would be the proper genders for the cookies is money masculine or feminine in french... Learning textbooks of money as masculine because of this may seem like a lot of options when it comes language! The kitchen ] |Nouns with the gender of a noun correctly in most cases because are...: //www.thoughtco.com/french-nouns-with-two-genders-1371193 ( accessed March 2, 2023 ) like Spanish and French, and they can be to. Generally a feminine word some money ), etc great resource for people interested in learning languages online -la. Lait ( some water ), des gteaux ( some milk ), etc total cost of the trip be... Common word in French or `` un chaise '' is incorrect, but more often than not, theyre even! If country name ends in ( -en ): Add ( ne ) to.... Century ) they are, by consequence, masculine several parts to then gteaux ( apples! Question & quot ; are feminine and which are masculine construction company purposes should! Translations of English words and phrases, la table ( the car,... Are masculine or feminine ) is je suis formidable and need something to that... Is a word may not feel confident or are only sometimes capitalized while... Words ), etc the future definite articles which are: l. house, the word restaurant French... Is used to store the user consent for the website in French navigate through website.