Definite and Indefinite Articles to Indicate Gender

In French, nouns have a gender: masculine or feminine. The article that comes before the noun changes according to the gender and number.

• le is used for masculine singular nouns.
• la is used for feminine singular nouns.
• les is used for all plural nouns (masculine and feminine).
• un is used for masculine singular nouns as an indefinite article.
• une is used for feminine singular nouns as an indefinite article.

Examples:

• le chien (the dog – masculine)
• la maison (the house – feminine)
• les enfants (the children – plural)
• un livre (a book – masculine)
• une pomme (an apple – feminine)

Adjectives to Indicate Gender

Adjectives in French agree with the gender and number of the noun they describe. Many adjectives have different forms for masculine and feminine.

• For many adjectives, add an -e to the masculine form for the feminine.

Masculine → Feminine: * beau → belle * bon → bonne * grand → grande * long → longue * magnifique → magnifique (this one does not change) * mauvais → mauvaise * petit → petite * vieux → vieille

Examples:

• un beau jardin (a beautiful garden – masculine)
• une belle maison (a beautiful house – feminine)
• un vieux livre (an old book – masculine)
• une vieille histoire (an old story – feminine)
• un grand arbre (a tall tree – masculine)
• une grande fenêtre (a tall window – feminine)
• un mauvais film (a bad movie – masculine)
• une mauvaise idée (a bad idea – feminine)
• un petit chat (a small cat – masculine)
• une petite fleur (a small flower – feminine)

In summary, always choose the article and adjective form that matches the gender of the noun you’re describing. Some adjectives have irregular feminine forms, so it’s useful to memorize the most common ones. For adjectives that do not change between masculine and feminine, the same form is used for both.