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Plural Agreement of Adjectives by Bruce Sallee and David Hebert

The majority of adjectives in French simply add an “s” at the end to agree with a plural noun, whether masculine or feminine. This is very important in written French, but there is not usually too much of a difference in pronunciation in the plural forms of adjectives. If the adjective is being used to agree with a masculine noun, simply add the “s” to the end of the masculine form. If it is being used to agree with a feminine noun, add the feminine ending, and then add the “s.”

Masculine Singular	Masculine Plural	Feminine Singular	Feminine Plural	English
bleu	bleus	bleue	bleues	blue
content	contents	contente	contentes	content, satisfied, pleased, glad
large	larges	large	larges	broad, wide large, extensive
petit	petits	petite	petites	little, small

If a masculine adjective already ends in “s” or “x,” there is no change in the masculine plural form. The exact same word is used, whether singular or plural. Because the feminine form will have an “e” at the end, it takes an “s” in the plural, following the regular rules.

Table 10-14

Plural Agreement of Adjectives That End in -s or -x

Masculine Singular	Masculine Plural	Feminine Singular	Feminine Plural	English
dangereux	dangereux	dangereuse	dangereuses	dangerous
frais	frais	fraîche	fraîches	cool, fresh, new
gros	gros	grosse	grosses	big, large, bulky
heureux	heureux	heureuse	heureuses	happy, blissful
malheureux	malheureux	malheureuse	malheureuses	unhappy, unlucky, unfortunate

Check out the following examples:

<tgroup cols="2"> <colspec colname="col1" colnum="1" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="left"/> <colspec colname="col2" colnum="2" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="left"/> <tbody> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>Je ne pense pas que les avions soient dangereux</emphasis>.</p></td> <td><p>I don't think that planes are dangerous.</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>Les enfants étaient heureux</emphasis>.</p></td> <td><p>The children were happy.</p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <div class="npsb"> <h2></h2> <p>Remember that if an adjective is used with two feminine nouns, it will take a feminine plural form. If it is used to modify both a masculine and a feminine noun, however, it will take the masculine plural form, as it would if it modified two masculine nouns.</p> </div> <p>Like conjugating verbs with <emphasis>ils</emphasis> and <emphasis>elles</emphasis>, the masculine gender kind of trumps the feminine when it comes to agreement of adjectives in the plural. If an adjective appears with two nouns, it must be used in the plural, because it is referring to the two of them together. If both nouns are feminine, the adjective will take the feminine plural form, because it is agreeing with the two nouns collectively. If one is masculine and one is feminine, the masculine plural form is used by convention, as shown in the following example:</p> <table frame="none" width="100%"> <title/> <tgroup cols="2"> <colspec colname="col1" colnum="1" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="left"/> <colspec colname="col2" colnum="2" colwidth="50%" colsep="0" rowsep="0" align="left"/> <tbody> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>Sara et Michel sont amusants</emphasis>.</p></td> <td><p>Sara and Michael are amusing.</p></td> </tr> <tr> <td><p><emphasis>Marie et Louise sont amusantes</emphasis>.</p></td> <td><p>Marie and Louise are amusing.</p></td> </tr> </tbody> </tgroup> </table> <p>Here's another way of looking at this: An adjective will be used in the feminine plural only when it is used with a plural feminine noun or two singular feminine nouns; but if a masculine noun is present, a masculine plural would be the correct choice, because it breaks that rule.</p> <h2>Pronunciation of Adjectives</h2> <p>In these sections, you learned about adjectives. Listen to the CD for the pronunciation of some of the expressions you learned.</p> <div class="npmo"> <img src="http://0.tqn.com/d/np/french/track.jpg"> <div class="npcp"><p><B>TRACK 47</B></p></div> </div> <p><emphasis>J'ai acheté un livre utile</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Nous avons regardé un film étranger</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>L'enfant est actif</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Tu portes des vêtements flatteurs</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Ce café est de qualité supérieure</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Ma mère est européenne</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Les enfants étaient heureux</emphasis>.</p> <p><emphasis>Marie et Louise sont amusantes</emphasis>.</p>  <div id="pagination"><ul><li class="prev"><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/french/using-adjectives/gender-agreement-of-adjectives.htm" title="Gender Agreement of Adjectives">Gender Agreement of Adjectives</a></li><li class="next"><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/french/using-adjectives/position-of-adjectives.htm" title="Position of Adjectives">Position of Adjectives</a> </li></ul></div></div> <div id="coda"> <div id="rel"><div class="n5">Related Articles</div><ul> <li><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/french/using-adjectives/plural-agreement-of-adjectives.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> Plural Agreement of Adjectives - French </a></li> <li><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/french/developing-a-basic-vocabulary/gender-and-number.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> Gender and Number - French </a></li> <li><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/french/using-nouns/formation-of-the-plural.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> Formation of the Plural - French </a></li> <li><a href="http://french.about.com/od/grammar/a/adjectives_indefinite.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> French Indefinite Adjectives - Adjectifs indéfinis </a></li> <li><a href="http://www.netplaces.com/french/family-friends-and-you/colors.htm" zT="18/1YL/Zn"> Colors - French </a></li> </ul></div> <div id="sec"><div class="n5">Read More Using Adjectives</div><ul><ul class="col1"><li ><a 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