ADJECTIVES IN FRENCH

1. ADJECTIVES IN FRENCH Les adjectifs en français

2. WHAT IS AN ADJECTIVE? An adjective is a word that modifies a noun by describing it in some way: • Shape • Color • Size • Nationality

3. French adjectives are different from English adjectives in two ways:

4. 1. Adjectives in French reflect the nouns they describe in gender and number. 2. In French, unlike in English, they usually follow the noun they modify. Un garçoncontent Une fille contente Des fillescontentes Des garçons contents

5. 1. French adjectives change to agree in gender and number with the nouns that they modify, which means there can be up to four forms of each adjective: Adjective: joli (pretty)     Masculine singular   joli    Feminine singular   jolie     Masculine plural   jolis    Feminine plural   jolies

6. The regular adjectives add -eto the base masculine form if it ends in consonant to form the feminine: Un garçon brun Une fille brune More than one? Add an -sto form the plural: Des garçonsbruns Des filles brunes

7. 2. In English, adjectives are always found in front of the noun. However, most French adjectives follow the noun they modify:un livre vert - green bookun professeur intelligent - smart teacher

8. But there are some French adjectives that precede the noun. a) Specialized adjectives called articles--le, la, l’, les, un, une, des, d’--always precede the noun they modify. b) BANGS un beau garçon - handsome boyun petit verre - small glass

9. BANGS: RULE FOR WRITING ADJECTIVES B – Beauty -beau / bel / belle / beaux / bellesA – Age -nouveau / nouvel / nouvelle / nouveaux / nouvellesN – Numbers -premier / premièreG - Greatness/Goodness -mauvais / mauvaiseS – Size -gros / grosse

10. French adjectives change if they are feminine or plural. But they can sometimes change if they are masculine too! • There can be up to four forms of each adjective! • Most French adjectives add ‘E’ for feminine and ‘S’ for plural.

11. Irregular French Adjectives There are several French adjectives which have irregular feminine and plural forms, as well as a special form when they are placed in front of a masculine noun that begins with a vowel or a mute H:

13. Here are some rules to help you with irregular adjectives? Adjectives whose singular masculine form end in -ien need to double the -n before adding –e to make it feminine. Le garçon canadien La fille canadienne For adjectives whose singular masculine form ends in -eux change the -x to -s and then add -e to form the feminine singular: La fille heureuse Le garçon heureux

14. Adjectives whose singular masculine form ends in -é add an unaccented -e to form the singular feminine: La fille réservée Le garçon réservé Adjectives whose singular masculine form ends in -il double the -l and add -e to form the feminine: La fillegentille Le garçon gentil

15. If more than one adjective modifies a noun, you may connect them with et: Une jeune fille heureuse et sympathique Un jeunehomme patient et poli

16. Je Suis Super! • Poster Criteria: • 1 page poster (8 ½ X 11) • Graphics or images are clear and related to the topic… YOU! • Most important items are labeled. • Sufficient use of vocabulary. • Attractive and colourful. • Picture of you with at least five sentences describing you. This may be typed.

17. Presentation Criteria: • Sign up for a presentation time, either in front of the class or in a round table. • Prepare for the presentation by reviewing the poster. • You should be able to present without reading off of the poster. You may consult the poster to remind yourself- be quick! • Make eye contact with the audience. • Speak in a clear, loud voice. • Bonne Chance!