Singular and plural nouns. Plurals of nouns in French. Plural formation of compound nouns Plurals in French table
1. The plural of adjectives in French is most often formed in the same way as for nouns, that is, by adding the ending -s.
For example:
un vase rouge - des vases rouges (red vase - red vases);
une belle table - de belles tables (beautiful table - beautiful tables);
une petite chambre - de petites chambres (small room - small rooms);
une ligne droite - des lignes droites (straight line - straight lines);
un mur bleu - des murs bleus (blue (blue) wall - blue walls).
The ending -s is not pronounced!
But in some cases, the plural of adjectives in French is formed according to different rules. They depend on which letter or combination of letters the singular adjective ends with.
2. Adjectives that end in -s or -x in the singular do not change in the plural.
For example:
un fils paresseux - des fils paresseux (lazy son - lazy sons);
un détail curieux - des détails curieux (a curious detail - curious details);
un voyage dangereux - des voyages dangereux (dangerous trip - dangerous trips);
un gros morceau - de gros morceaux (large piece - large pieces);
un vieux cahier - de vieux cahiers (old notebook - old notebooks).
But the adjective vieux in the masculine singular also has another form - vieil (used before a noun beginning with a vowel or an unpronounceable “h” (“h” muet)). In this case, the plural will be formed from vieux, for example: un vieil oncle - de vieux oncles (old uncle - old uncles).
3. Adjectives ending in -eau in the singular form take on the ending -eaux in the plural.
For example:
un beau jardin - de beaux jardins (beautiful garden - beautiful gardens);
un nouveau tableau - de nouveaux tableaux (new painting - new paintings).
But the above adjectives, which have another form in the masculine singular: bel, nouvel (used before a noun starting with a vowel or unpronounceable “h” (“h” muet)), form the plural from beau, nouveau.
For example:
un bel ami - de beaux amis (beautiful friend - beautiful friends);
un nouvel appareil - de nouveaux appareils (new apparatus - new apparatus).
It should be noted that in the feminine gender the ending -s is added to the plural adjectives belle (beautiful) and nouvelle (new): de belles places (beautiful places, squares), de nouvelles tasses (new cups).
4. Most adjectives that end in -al in the singular have an ending -aux in the plural.
For example:
un problème médical - des problèmes médicaux (medical problem - medical problems);
un pays tropical - des pays tropicaux (tropical country - tropical countries);
un festival international - des festivals internationaux (international festival - international festivals);
un principe fondamental - des principes fondamentaux (fundamental principle - fundamental principles).
But not all adjectives that end in -al in the singular end in -aux in the plural. For example, the adjectives fatal (fatal, inevitable), banal (banal), glacial (icy), natal (native), final (final, final, final) have the ending -s in the plural.
For example:
un pays natal - des pays natals (home country - home countries);
un but final - des buts finals (final goal - final goals);
un compliment banal - des compliments banals (banal compliment - banal compliments);
un vent glacial - des vents glacials (icy wind - icy winds).
So, today we will look at the topic “singular and plural nouns”. We have two news and both are good! Nouns in French are not inflected, and the plural is formed according to a single standard, with rare exceptions. So in general, and in general, the situation with nouns is not so scary. Let's explore all these benefits with number nouns!
For example:
un homme - des hommes (man - men)
un loup - des loups (wolf - wolves)
une femme - des femmes (woman - women)
un fils - des fils (son - sons)
une croix - des croix (cross - crosses)
un nez - des nez (nose - noses)
Some nouns that end in -au, -eau, -eu, don't like ending -s, so they pluralize with the ending -x:
un bijou - des bijoux (jewel - jewels)
un caillou - des cailloux (cobblestones - cobblestones)
un chou - des choux (head of cabbage - heads of cabbage)
un genou - des genoux (knee - knees)
un hibou - des hiboux (owl - owls)
un joujou - des joujoux (toy - toys)
un pou - des poux (louse - lice)
And here are the nouns with the ending -al behave extremely impudently and defiantly and do not want to conjugate according to the general rule! And guess what? In the plural they prefer to end with -aux:
un journal - des journaux (newspaper - newspapers)
un animal - des animaux (animal - animals)
un canal - des canaux (channel - channels).
It seems easy to understand the number of nouns, but exceptions They will never let you relax. Nouns ending in -al:
un bal - des bals (ball - balls)
un carnaval - des carnavals (carnival - carnivals)
un chacal - des chacals (jackal - jackal)
un festival - des festivals (festival - festivals)
un régal - des régals (delicacy - delicacies)
Some nouns with the ending have similar behavior (as for -al) -ail:
un bail - des baux (lease agreement - lease agreements)
un émail - des émaux (enamel - enamels)
un soupirail - des soupiraux (hatch, vent - hatches, vents)
un travail - des travaux (work - work)
un vantail - des vantaux (sash (doors, windows) - sashes)
But other nouns ending in -ail still chose to remain faithful to our faithful ending - s:
un détail - des détails (detail - details).
Ah, here they are ours exceptions, which cross out any rules of French grammar - welcome!
un aïeul - des aïeux (ancestor - ancestors)
un ciel - des cieux (sky - heaven)
un oeil - des yeux (eye - eyes)
And finally, a couple (or rather, three) of nouns that have changes in pronunciation, when changing their number:
un boeuf - des boeufs (bull - bulls)
un oeuf - des oeufs [ø] (egg - eggs)
un os [əs] - des os [o] (bone - bones)
If you want to learn French on your own, be prepared for difficulties in forming the number of compound nouns. But that’s a completely different story... Do you want to know about that too? Then sign up for or ask our teachers this question!
We all know that the plural indicates the number of objects: there can be two, several, many. Today we will talk about the plural of nouns in French. In French, as in Russian and other languages, nouns are singular ( lesingulier) and plural ( le).
There are several rules that are involved in the formation of the plural. If you remember these rules, you will not have any difficulties in this matter. Let's get started!
Nothing special - just plural!
Friends, we invite you to get to know the plural of French adjectives and how it is formed. So, here are a few basic and important rules:
- Most nouns form their plural using the ending – s : un homme – des homme s ; une cravate – des cravate s ; une carrotte – des carrotte s .
- Those nouns that end in – s, – z, – x – do not change in the plural: un poi s -des poi s une croi x - des crois x , un ne z - des ne
- If nouns end in -au, -eau, -eu, -œu , then in the plural they acquire the ending – x: un manteau - des manteau x, un tuyau - des tuyau x , un cheveu - des cheveu x , un vœu - des vœu Exceptions with ending – s : landau – landau s (pram), sarrau – sarrau s (work blouse), bleu – bleu s (bruise), pneu – pneu s (tire), emeu – emeu s (ostrich Emu).
- Nouns with endings – al in the plural they form the ending –aux: le m al- les m Exceptions that obey the general rule, ending –s: bal, cal, carnaval, festival, chacal, récital, régal (un festival - des festival s ).
- Nouns ending in – ail in the plural they take on the ending – aux : aspirail, bail, corail, émail, fermail, gemmail, soupirail, travail, vantail, vitrail (le corail - les cor aux ). The remaining such nouns are inflected as usual: un chandail - des chandails.
And a few more rules...
- Word un ideal has two plural forms: des ideals / des ideaux.
- Word œil has a special plural form yeux.
- Usually, when forming the plural according to the general rule, the pronunciation does not change, with the exception of the words un bœuf, un œuf, un os: bœuf – bœufs; œuf [œf]- œufs [ø]; os [ɔs] - os [o].
- Many borrowed nouns form the plural according to the general rule by adding the ending – s: un steak – des steak s ; un hot-dog- des hot-dog s ; un curriculum – des curriculum s .
- Nouns of English origin in man have two forms. As in English - man changes to - men or is added to it - s: un barman - (barmen or barmans); un policeman – (policemans ou policemen); un gentleman – des gentlemen.
- Noun ail(garlic) in the plural becomes the word aux. But, if we are talking about a purely botanical term, then they use the standard plural form -
- The word un lieu (place) is plural des lieu x (places), but un lieu (saithe fish) – des lieu s (fish of the cod family).
These were all the most important rules for pluralizing nouns in French. To get better at this grammar topic, do as many exercises as you can by checking out our plurals cheat sheet. We wish you good luck!
You are already familiar with the plural article - it’s time to get acquainted with how the plural forms nouns in French.
Rules for forming the plural of nouns
As a rule, the plural of nouns is indicated by the ending “s”, which is most often not pronounced. The ending "s" ceases to be "mute" only when it is necessary to make a binding. How to recognize the plural if it cannot be heard by ear? That's what articles are for! They will help you draw the necessary conclusions about the number of the noun.
So, the basic rule for forming the plural is the ending "s", however, French nouns have several pluralization features. Let's study them more closely:
1. Nouns with endings -s, -z, -x, in the plural they do not change at all. For example: une noix – des noix(nut - nuts).
2. Nouns ending in -au, -eau, -eu form the plural using the ending "x": un oiseau – des oiseaux(bird - birds).
3. R words with endings -ou is added s: un trou - des trous(hole - holes), but there are a number of exceptions:
un bijou - des bijoux(decoration - decorations)
un cailloux - des cailloux(stone, cobblestone - stones)
un chou - des choux(cabbage - cabbage)
un genou - des genoux(knee - knees)
un joujou - des joujoux(toy - toys)
un hibou - des hiboux(owl - owls)
un pou - des poux(louse - lice)
4. Masculine nouns with endings -al form the plural using the ending -aux: un cheval - des chevaux(horse - horses).
The exceptions are: un bal - des bals(ball - balls), de carnaval - des carnavals(carnival - carnivals), un festival — des festivals(festival - festivals).
5. Ending on -ail also receive the standard plural ending "s", as in the words un détail - des détails(detail - details). However, there are a few exceptions here:
un corail - des coraux(coral - corals)
un émail - des émaux(email - letters)
un vitrail - des vitraux(stained glass - stained glass)
un travail - des travaux(Job)
6. Some nouns have a special plural form: un œil – des yeux(eye - eyes).
Some French nouns only have a plural form! For example:
les archives- archive;
les ciseaux- scissors;
les débats- discussion;
les échecs- chess;
les environs- surroundings;
les frais- expenses;
les moeurs- morals, customs, etc.
It is important to note that in French, not only common nouns that can be counted are modified by numbers, but also abstract ones. This happens when a noun begins to designate a specific object. For example: du bronze (bronze) - des bronzes (bronze products).
It's time to consolidate what you've learned! Don't be afraid to refer back to the lesson material if you have any doubts. And don’t look at the answer ahead of time - check yourself first.
Lesson assignments
Exercise 1. Form the plural of the following nouns:
1. un livre 2. un cheval 3. une chaise 4. un bal 5. un écolier 6 un œil 7. un astronaute 8. une voix 9. un journal 10. un pois 11. un lieu 12. un trou 13. un festival 14. un coucou 15. un métal 16. un travail 17. un joujou 18. un détail 19. un lit 20. un bleu 21. un morceau 23. un corail 24. un cheveu
Exercise 2. Change the plural to singular:
1. des hiboux 2. les archives 3. des festivals 4. des bijoux 5. des vitraux 6. des tables 7. des oiseaux 8. des nez 9. les échecs 10. des émaux
Answer 1.
1. des livres 2. des chevaux 3. des chaises 4. des bals 5. des écoliers 6 des yeux 7. des astronautes 8. des voix 9. des journals 10. des pois 11. des lieus 12. des trous 13. des festivals 14. des coucous 15. des métaux 16. des travaux 17. des joujoux 18. des détails 19. des lits 20. des bleus 21. des morceaux 23. des coraux 24. des cheveux
Answer 2.
1. un hibou 2. — 3. un festival 4. un bijou 5. des vitrail 6. un table 7. un oiseau 8. un nez 9. — 10. un émail
