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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
What is the difference between Votre and Vos in French?
"votre" and "vos" are both possessives, and both translated by "your". You use "votre" when speaking about a single object:
- C'est votre voiture ? (is that your car).
- Est-ce que votre mère va bien ? (is your mother going well,)
You use "vos" when there are a plurality of objects:
- je connais déjà vos enfants (I already know your children)
- sortez vos cahiers et vos trousses (take out your notebooks and your pencil cases).
When do you use UNe or UN instead of Le la or l'?
"Une" and "un" are undefinite articles. They are translated in English by "a - an". "Une" is to be followed by feminine nouns (une voiture: a car - une idée: an idea). "Un" is followed by masculine nouns (un bus: a bus - un évènement: an event).
Le (masc.), la (fem.), l' (both masculine or feminine - used when the following noun begins by a vowel sound) are definite articles. They are all translated by "the".
To summarize, the difference between "un - une" and "le - l' - la" is the same than between the English "a -an" and "the" and you should use these words in the same way:
- j'ai vu une voiture bleue : I saw a blue car (some or any car)
- je suis monté dans la voiture bleue : I stepped in the blue car (not in the red one).
How do you ask the question what day is today in French?
To ask "What day is today?" in French, you would say "Quel jour sommes-nous aujourd'hui ?"
Does 'y' comes before the verb in French?
Yes. Ex: J'y suis, j'y reste (here I am, here I stay) - Je vais y aller (I'm going to go there - before the verb aller) - elle y pense souvent (she often thinks about it)
"les" is a definite article, translated by "the". It is used as the plural of "le" (masculine), la (feminine), l' (apostrophe, used in both masculine or feminine, but before a vowel sound).
La voiture (singular, feminine: the car) > les voitures vont vite (the cars are going fast)
le chien aboie > les chiens aboient (the dog is barking > the dogs are barking)
Both Je n'aime pas manger de salade and Je n'aime pas manger de la salade can be correct.
Specifically, the subject pronoun je is "I." The negative construction ne*...pas means "not." The present infinitive manger means "to eat." The partitive de means "some" in positive constructions and "not any" in negative constructions. The feminine singular definite article la means "the." The feminine noun saladetranslates as "salad." Both phrases will convey in their entirety as "I don't like to eat salad." But the inclusion of the definite article la also will express particular dislike over eating some of a particular salad.
The pronunciation will be "zhuh nehm pah maw-zhey duh sah-lahd" and "zhuh nehm pah maw-zhey duh lah sah-lahd" in French.
*The vowel drops -- and is replaced by an apostrophe -- before a verb whose spelling begins with a vowel.
Is the French phrase 'Je déteste' feminine?
No, the French phrase Je déteste is not feminine.
Specifically, the French language does not differentiate in gender for the first ("I" in the singular, "we" in the plural) and second ("you" in the singular, "you all" in the plural) person points of view. The subject pronoun je merely means "I," with no gender implied. The present indicative verb déteste translates as "(I) am detesting, detest, do detest."
The pronunciation will be "zhuh dey-tehst" in French.
Is poele masculine or feminine?
Poêle has two meanings. "Une poêle" (feminine noun) is a pan or frying pan. "Un poêle" (masculine noun) is a wood or coal furnace formerly used for heating and cooking. So "la poêle" was frequently on "le poêle".
What is the passe compose for passer with etre?
The Passé composé, for the verb passer involves the auxiliary "avoir": (i.e. to cross through or to spend time)
j'ai passé - tu as passé - il a passé - nous avons passé - vous avez passé - ils ont passé.
"être passé" has a different meaning: (i.e. to pass by)
je suis passé(e) - tu es passé(e) - il, elle est passé(e) - nous sommes passé(e)s - vous êtes passé(e)s - ils, elles sont passé(e)s
What is 'I trust them' in French Using reflexive verbs- Je you fier?
To trust is "faire confiance" in French. Using the reflective form, "I trust them" is "je leur fais confiance".
You can also use "se fier à ..."; the reflective form would be "je me fie à eux"
What does mon ma and mes mean in French?
"Mon", "ma", and "mes" all mean "my" in French.
Ma = my + feminine noun > ma voiture : my car.
Mon = my + masculine noun > mon vélo : my bicycle. It can also be used with a feminine noun which begins with a vowel sound (which would be hard to pronounce when associated with "ma", ex: mon amie.
Mes = my (plural masc. or fem.) > mes amis, mes amies : my [male] friends, my [female] friends.
What does Quel est le verbe écrit à l'infinitif mean?
Quel est le verbe écrit à l'infinitif means "what is the verb written in the infinitive form?" in French.
Is a cat singular or plural in French?
A cat is "un chat", masculine noun and singular if there is only one. Use the plural "des chats" when there are several of them.
Do you separate adjectives with a comma in French?
That happens very often that adjectives are separated with commas in French, forming an easier list to read. Even more commonly, you could find a coordinating word like "et" (and) in between two adjectives, or one could be positioned before the noun and the second one after it.
Ex: Une maison verte et bleue (a green and blue house) - une grande maison bleue (a large blue house).
Is the French word ami masculine or feminine?
- masculine : ami, amis ;
- feminine : amie, amies.
The pronounciation is the same (ah-mee) in every form.
Is the French word gentil masculine or feminine?
"Gentil" is a masculine adjective in French. The feminine is "gentille".
"le sel" is a masculine noun in French. You can use the definite article "le" (the), but not the undefinite "un" (a), as salt is uncountable; some salt is "du sel".
How do you change French nouns from masculine to feminine?
When it is possible to do so (not all French nouns can be changed from masculine to feminine or vice-versa), the mark of the feminine is often an additional "e" at the end of the word.
Ex: un étudiant, une étudiante - le boulanger, la boulangère (the baker); le gagnant, la gagnante (the winner); un français, une française (a Frenchman, a Frenchwoman).
But that has many many exceptions:
- words which are used in one gender only : une hirondelle (a swallow) is a feminine word even when it is the male bird; le moineau (the sparrow) is a masculine noun even when speaking of the female bird.
- words which are spelled the same in both genders: un peintre, une peintre (a painter); un juge, une juge (a judge)
- words which are commonly spelled the same in both genders: un professeur, une professeur (a teacher); un auteur, une auteur (a writer) but are increasingly "feminized" by an additional "e" (une professeure, une auteure). These new spellings are now accepted as correct, but look quite awful to most people.
Is the French word for a glass masculine or feminine?
A glass is translated by "un verre", masculine noun, in French.
Is the French word 'bureau' masculine?
Yes, the French word bureau is masculine.
Specifically, the word is a noun in its singular form. It may be preceded by the masculine singular definite article le ("the") or the masculine singular indefinite article un ("a"). It most frequently means "desk" and "office".
The pronunciation will be "byoo-ro" in French.
What is the adjective of the word sister in French?
If you wanted to speak of brotherly/sisterly sentiments in French, the adjective "fraternel / fraternelle" would be used. They come from the Latin word fratria used to speak of siblings (boys and girls alike).
Technically, a French adjective related to the word "soeur" (sister) is the word "sororel" which shares the same roots as "sister" or "sorority". Absolutely nobody will understand it.
What is the opposite of the French word 'rapide'?
Lente is an opposite of the French word rapide.
Specifically, the feminine singular adjective lente means "slow". The feminine/masculine singular adjective rapide translates as "fast, quick, rapid". The pronunciations will be "lawnt" and "ra-pead" in French.
