The feminine of adjectives

What is an adjective?

To recap, an adjective is a word that accompanies a noun (a name) to give it precision and with which it agrees in gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural). A noun can be accompanied by several adjectives.

Examples: un grand chapeau ("grand" is an adjective, "un chapeau" is a noun): a big hat

Une petite maison blanche ("petite" is an adjective, "une maison" is a noun, "blanche" is an adjective).

The agreement of adjectives

If you want to speak French correctly, it is therefore essential to know whether the nouns you use are masculine or feminine, but also to know the feminine of adjectives!

1. General rule

In general, forming the feminine form of adjectives is quite easy: simply add an "e"!

Masculine	Feminine
Petit	Petite
Grand	Grande
Intelligent	Intelligente
​Mauvais	Mauvaise
Poli	Polie
Compliqué	Compliquée
National	Nationale

Pronunciation 🗣: The final consonants "-d" and "-t" are not pronounced in the masculine form, but they are pronounced in the feminine form due to the “e”.

2. Special cases

Obviously, the rule cannot be so easy, of course there are some exceptions! You must pay attention to the ending of the adjective in the masculine form as it defines its ending in the feminine form.

Case of adjectives ending with "e" in the masculine

If the adjective already ends with the letter "e" in the masculine, the feminine is the same. (We do not add a second "e" to form the feminine).

Examples: facile (easy), difficile (difficult), simple, habile (skillful), égoïste (selfish), propre (clean), sale (dirty), riche (rich), pauvre (poor)...

Un exercice facile (an easy exercise): masculine / Une dictée facile (an easy dictation): feminine

Irregular adjectives in the feminine

The ending of the adjective in the masculine indicates its ending in the feminine. But some adjectives are also very irregular and completely different in the feminine. It's up to you to memorize them.

Masculine	Feminine
Réel, naturel, essentiel, traditionnel…	Réelle, naturelle, essentielle, traditionnelle…
Naïf, définitif, agressif…	​Naïve, définitive, agressive…
Premier, dernier, léger…	Première, dernière, légère…
Heureux, joyeux, peureux…	Heureuse, joyeuse, peureuse…
​Bon, mignon	Bonne, mignonne
Ancien, aérien…	Ancienne, aérienne…
Public	Publique
Faux	Fausse
Doux	Douce
Beau	Belle
Fou, mou	Folle, molle
Franc	Franche
Sec	Sèche
Long	Longue
Frais	Fraîche
Vieux	Vieille

What about nationalities?

Nationalities are adjectives and follow the same rules.

Examples: II est français./Elle est française.

Il est belge./Elle est belge. (same for masculine and feminine)

Il est marocain./Elle est marocaine.

Il est brésilien. / Elle est brésilienne.

There are 2 exceptions:

Masculine	Feminine
Grec Ex : Un monument grec	Grecque Ex : la mythologie grecque
Turc Ex : Un plat turc	Turque Ex : l'histoire turque

Exercise

Transform the following adjectives to the feminine. The answers are below the image.

Answers: 1-petite, 2-sympathique, 3-lourde, 4-cruelle, 5-vive, 6-grecque, 7-publique, 8-natale, 9-étroite, 10-nerveuse, 11-turque, 12-officielle, 13-belle, 14-fraîche, 15-aérienne, 16-première

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