Transcript MASCULINE OR FEMININE? SINGULAR OR PLURAL?

DEFINITE ARTICLES: Le, La, Les, L’
MASCULINE OR FEMININE?
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
AIM:
•To learn how to use a reference chart to apply
grammar rules to definite articles.
NOUNS
• In French, nouns are either masculine or feminine.
• There are no hard and fast rules about the gender of a noun so you
just have to learn the gender as you go along.
• Some rules can guide you to an extent.
• If a word ends in –e, it is normally feminine.
• If a word ends in a consonant, it is usually masculine.
• It is always best to check in a dictionary first and see whether it says
NM (masculine) or NF (feminine).
• Try www.wordreference.com if you prefer to use online resources.
Definite Articles le la l’ les
The definite article is the word the.
Why is it called the definite article?
Think of this example:
Have you eaten a cake?
The cake is not specific.
Yes, I have eaten a cake.
Have you eaten the cake? Yes, I have eaten the cake.
There is definitely only one cake in this situation.
Remember that in French nouns are masculine or feminine and can also be
singular (just one) or plural (more than one). This information tells you which
definite article you need to use so remember to check in a dictionary if you are
not sure.
You must ask yourself 3 questions in the following order
to know what definite article to use in the French
language.
1. Is the noun plural? If the noun ends in an “s” then it is plural and you use
“Les.”
(les vacances, les frites, les amis)
2. If the noun is not plural then you ask the 2nd question- Does the noun
begin with a vowel? If yes, then you use (L’) as your marker.
(l’école, l’anglais)
3.If the noun is not plural and does not begin with a vowel then you have to askIs the noun feminine or masculine? If is masculine, you use (Le) and if it is
feminine, you use (La)
(le cinéma, la plage)
DEFINITE ARTICLE
THE
MASCULINE
SINGULAR
FEMININE
SINGULAR
MASCULINE
PLURAL
FEMININE
PLURAL
le
la
les
les
WORDS BEGINNING
WITH A VOWEL
l’
AFTER A NEGATIVE
de/d’
Match up the definite article in French with the gender/number of the noun in
English.
•Le
•La
•L’
•Les
Masculine singular
Feminine singular
Vowel/ H
Plural
When looking up the gender of nouns,
you can either use a paper dictionary or
an online dictionary like
www.wordreference.com
Find out the gender of the nouns and then write the correct definite article (le / la
/ l’ / les) in the blank.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
l.
Le bateau est grand.
____
La souris est petite.
____
____
L’ Eurostar est rapide.
____
La bibliothèque est ouverte.
____
L’ anglais est difficile.
____
Le français est facile.
____
La moto est lente.
____
vélos
sont
pratiques.
Les
____ pantalon est chic.
Le
____
La radio est bleue.
____ mobylettes sont dangereuses.
Les
____ chaise est élégante.
La
le
la
les
l’
Translate these phrases by using a dictionary, remembering to ask yourself the important questions before
you decide on the correct definite article:
*
Is it masculine (m) or feminine (f)?
*
Is it singular (s) or plural (p)?
*
Does it begin with a vowel or an “h”?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
The forest
The battery
The lounge
The sponge
The ice-rink
The banks
The ice-cream
The apartment
The fish
The cars
The (train) station
The brother
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
La forêt
La pile
Le salon
L’éponge
La patinoire
Les banques
La glace
L’appartement
Le poisson
Les voitures
La gare
Le frère
Your turn