French adjectives agree with the noun they describe in gender and number
In English, adjectives never change: a tall man, a tall woman, tall men, tall women. In French, adjectives must match the gender (m/f) and number (sing./plural) of the noun.
| Masculine | Feminine | |
|---|---|---|
| Singular | un homme grand | une femme grande |
| Plural | des hommes grands | des femmes grandes |
Most adjectives follow this pattern. The masculine singular is the base form you find in a dictionary.
| M. singular | F. singular | M. plural | F. plural |
|---|---|---|---|
| grand | grande | grands | grandes |
| petit | petite | petits | petites |
| intelligent | intelligente | intelligents | intelligentes |
⚠️ The added -e often makes the final consonant audible: grand = silent d; grande = /d/ heard.
If the masculine form already ends in -e, the feminine is identical. Only add -s for plural.
Some common adjectives have irregular feminine forms:
| M. singular | F. singular | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| beau | belle | beautiful |
| nouveau | nouvelle | new |
| vieux | vieille | old |
| bon | bonne | good |
| long | longue | long |
| blanc | blanche | white |
Most French adjectives come AFTER the noun — opposite to English. A small group of common adjectives comes before.
| After noun (most) | Before noun (BAGS) |
|---|---|
| une voiture rouge | Beauty: beau/belle, joli(e) |
| un homme intelligent | Age: jeune, vieux/vieille, nouveau/nouvelle |
| une femme grande | Goodness: bon/bonne, mauvais(e) |
| des livres intéressants | Size: grand(e), petit(e), gros/grosse |
BAGS = Beauty, Age, Goodness, Size — these go before the noun.
| Avoid | Use | Why |
|---|---|---|
| une femme grand | une femme grande | All adjectives must agree with the noun. Femme is feminine → grande. |
| des hommes intelligents (silent s) | des hommes intelligents /ɛ̃tɛliʒɑ̃/ | Plural -s on adjectives is silent unless followed by a vowel (liaison). |
| un nouveau livre / un bel homme | un nouveau livre / un bel homme | Beau, nouveau, vieux have a special form (bel, nouvel, vieil) before a masculine noun starting with a vowel. |
| une voiture rouge grande | une grande voiture rouge | BAGS adjectives go before the noun; others after. Multiple adjectives: BAGS first, descriptive after. |
| Point | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| M. singular | no change (base) | grand, petit |
| F. singular | +e | grande, petite |
| M. plural | +s | grands, petits |
| F. plural | +es | grandes, petites |
| Already -e | no change (+ s pl.) | jeune → jeune, jeunes |
| Irregular: beau | belle (f.) | une belle maison |
| Position: after | most adjectives | une voiture rouge |
| Position: before (BAGS) | Beauty, Age, Goodness, Size | un grand homme |