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Grammaire Francaise
Here we find questions about the grammatical rules that govern French expressions and sentences. Typically, contributors ask about verb tenses, stems and roots of words, spelling, pronunciation, and agreement of adjectives and nouns in gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural).
2,414 Questions
Is bicycle a feminine word in french?
Yes, "bicycle" is a masculine word in French, spelled as "le vélo".
Most French verbs that end with "re" (like répondre, which means "to answer") are conjugated by replacing that "re" with the appropriate suffix according to the phrase's subject:
Je réponds
Tu réponds
Il/Elle/On répond
Nous répondons
Vous répondez
Ils/Elles répondent
Notice that you add nothing after the Il/Elle/On form of the verb.
The following are some other French "re" verbs that follow the same pattern:
- attendre - to wait for
- perdre - to lose
- tondre - to mow
- vendre - to sell
Use a French "re" verb in past tense by replacing the ending "re" with a "u."
For example, Il a répondu à sa lettre. - He answered his letter.
The most significant irregular "re" verb is être (to be). It's conjugation:
- Je suis
- Tu es
- Il/Elle/On est
- Nous sommes
- Vous êtes
- Ils/Elles sont
The reason this verb's important is because there are a few French verbs (such as aller) that are used in past tense with the helping verb être instead of with avoir.
For example:
Je suis allé au café. - I went to the café.
Elles sont allé au stade hier. - They went to the stadium yesterday.
The verb prendre (to take, to have food or drink) follows the same pattern for regular "re" verbs but with a few differences:
- Je prends
- Tu prends
- Il/Elle/On prend
- Nous prenons
- Vous prenez
- Ils/Elles prennent
The only conjugation difference: drop the "d" for the Nous, Vous, and Ils/Elles forms of this verb.
The past participle of prendre is pris:
Ils ont pris un taxi. - They took a taxi.
Mettre (to put on, to wear) also follows a similar pattern but with a few differences:
- Je mets
- Tu mets
- Il/Elle/On met
- Nous mettons
- Vous mettez
- Ils/Elles mettent
The only conjugation difference: also remove the "t" when you replace the "re" with the appropriate ending for the Je, Tu, and Il/Elle/On forms of this verb.
The past participle of mettre is mis:
Elle a mis une jupe. - She wore a skirt.
Faire (to do, to make) is a special "re" verb; it has its own distinctive pattern:
- Je fais
- Tu fais
- Il/Elle/On fait
- Nous faisons
- Vous faites
- Ils/Elles font
The past participle of faire is fait:
J'ai fait mes devoirs. - I did my homework.
Most French verbs that end in "ir" are conjugated by replacing the ending "r" with the appropriate ending according to the phrase's subject:
For example, conugate finir (to finish).
- Je finis
- Tu finis
- Il/Elle/On/Qui finit
- Nous finissons
- Vous finissez
- Ils/Elles finissent
The following are some French "ir" verbs that follow the same pattern:
- choisir - to choose
- detenir - to detain/hold
- dormir - to sleep
- grandir - to grow
- grossir - to gain weight, to grow
- maigrir - to lose weight, to shrink
- sortir - to take out, to go out
To use a French "ir" verb in past tense, simply remove the "r."
For example, J'ai fini mes devoirs. - I finished my homework.
However, the past tense of the irregular verb voir (to see) is vu.
For example, J'ai vu ma grand-mère. - I saw my grandma.
The most significant irregular "ir" verb is avoir (to have). It's conjugations:
- J'ai
- Tu as
- Il/Elle/On/Qui a
- Nous avons
- Vous avez
- Ils/Elles ont
The reason this verb is so important is because it's used as the helping verb of most phrases in past tense. A verb is written in past tense by putting its past participle form after the conjugated form of avoir (or être). For example:
J'ai fait mes devoirs. - I did my homework.
Nous avons mangé notre déjeuner. - We ate our lunch.
Elles ont étudié le matin. - They studied this morning.
The French verb vouloir (to want) has its own conjugation pattern:
- Je veux
- Tu veux
- Il/Elle/On/Qui veut
- Nous voulons
- Vous voulez
- Ils/Elles veulent
For example, Vous voulez mon crayon. - You want my crayon.
What is the past participle for mettre?
mis (masculine singular)
mis (masculine plural)
mise (feminine singular)
mises (feminine plural)
Yes it is. There is a very famous French actress named Sophia Loren.
NO! it is not. Sophia Loren is Italian, not French.
What is the pronounciation of bonsoir?
bonsoir is pronounced something along the lines of 'boh-swahr'. An audio sample is in link.
Is 'tout droit' feminine or masculine in French?
Tout droit is a masculine, not a feminine, phrase in French. The adverb and masculine singular adjective translate into English as "straight ahead." The pronunciation will be "too dwa" in French.
What does the word velo mean in french?
"Vélo" is the shortened form of "vélocipède," which means bicycle in French. It is a common term used to refer to bicycles in everyday language.
What is Il n'y a pas assez de mots dans le dictionnaire pour vous décrire?
There are not enough words in the dictionary to describe you. It may be a compliment or an insult.
What words are masculine in French and what words are feminine in French?
In French, nouns are masculine or feminine as there is no "neutral" gender. The related adjectives take the gender of the noun. The first difficulty is to learn what gender is each noun. French children master all this in their early years, simply by listening and speaking. When they go through primary school they learn some grammar rules but they don't have to learn lists of words.
When you came across a word for the first time, look at the article. "Un" and "le" are masculine articles, hence the noun is a masculine one. "Une" or "la" are feminine articles, so the following noun is feminine. Ex: "Une hirondelle" (a swallow) is feminine, even though you could speak of a male bird.
Another hint may lie in the adjective. The feminine form of the adjective often has an additional (unvoiced) "e" at the end. Ex: une couleur féminine > the additional "e" tells you that the adjective is feminine, so "couleur" is also a feminine word. Un comportement féminin (a feminine behaviour): there is no additional "e", so féminin is a... masculine adjective (funny if yo think of it, but true).
These are general rules, and every rule will have its exception. For instance some nouns will be the same in either gender (a teacher will be un /or/ une professeur)
This can be unsettling for people learning French, but French speakers will undertand you all the same, and appreciate the effort.
How do you spell the french word that sounds like twal?
The French word that sounds like "twal" is spelled "touaille." It refers to a towel or cloth used for cleaning.
Does 1.4 milliard d'euros in French equal 140 millions d'euros?
No. Milliard is the French word for billion (1 000 000 000). 1.4 milliard is 1,400,000,000 or 1400 millions euros.
What is the french translation of the name Austin?
I'm pretty sure it's just Austin, XD I go to a French school and we just call people with the name Austin Austin
What is the salary of a french teacher makes?
The salary of a French teacher can vary depending on factors such as location, experience, and type of institution. On average, in the United States, a French teacher can make between $50,000 to $70,000 per year. In France, the salary range for a French teacher is around €25,000 to €45,000 annually.
No, but you might be thinking of derrière, which means "behind".
Why are french people feminine?
In French, all nouns have a gender (masculine or feminine) regardless of the actual gender of the object they represent. This grammatical concept does not imply that French people are feminine in character or behavior. It is simply a linguistic feature of the French language.
La belle femme canadienne travaille avec ma mère is a feminine equivalent of the French phrase Le bel homme canadien travaille avec mon père. The respective pronunciations in French will be "la bel fahm ka-na-dyen tra-veye a-vek ma mer" ("The beautiful Canadian woman works with my mother") and "luh beh-lum tra-veye a-vek mo per" ("The handsome Canadian man works with my father").
Is happy in French masculine or feminin?
An adjective doesn't have a gender.
Une femme heureuse : a happy woman
Un homme heureux : a happy man
What is partir in the form of passe compose with etre?
Je suis parti
Tu es parti
il est parti
Nous sommes partis
Vous êtes partis
Ils sont partis
What does clandestine mean in french?
The French equivalent of the English word, clandestine, is, clandestin, and has the same meaning: secret, concealed, covert.
