is homework plural in french

• Sign Up for $1

Plurals in French: A full guide on how to form le pluriel en français

How do we form plurals  in French? Often it’s as simple as adding an -s , just like you do in English. Words with certain endings, however, have different rules for forming their French plurals. So which French plurals end in -x , and which ones remain unchanged ? What about pluralizing compound nouns  in French?

Today we’ll cover all the different groups of French nouns to see their pluralization rules . We’ll also include any exceptions for each of the rules we see. We’ll provide several example words to demonstrate every one of the French pluralization rules, along with their English translations.

This post complements our other intermediate post on French gender rules , as well as our beginner post on the French articles . For now, let’s just dive into our post on forming the plural  of French nouns.

Scroll down to the conclusion for a quick reference table  of all the French pluralization rules .  Read on for explanations of each one.

This article is brought to you by LingoCulture, Where you can get unlimited private French classes via Zoom with native teachers for a flat monthly rate. It’s the closest thing to immersion you can get without living in a French-speaking country. Click here to learn more.

Most French nouns: -s

This is clearly the easiest rule for French plurals, since it’s so close to the default rule for pluralizing English nouns. Just add an -s  to make most French nouns plural.

• un croissant / des croissant s
• une baguette / des baguette s
• un sandwich / des sandwich s
• une limonade / des limonade s

We’re not even going to translate these French words for you, as they’re so close to their English counterparts! The important thing is to see le singulier  of each one, compared with le pluriel . So what’s the most common French pluralization rule ?

• Pour la majorité des noms communs au singulier , nous ajoutons simplement -s  pour les avoir au pluriel . – For the majority of regular nouns in singular , we simply add -s  to have them in plural .

French nouns ending in -s, -x, -z: no change

This rule has parallels with certain English words that are unchanged between singular and plural, particularly where adding an additional pluralization would just sound comical. Think of English words like series, crossroads, headquarters, or species, which exhibit no change between their singular and plural forms .

• un cours / des cours – a course / some courses
• un pays / des pays – a country / some countries
• un prix / des prix – a price, a prize / some prices, some prizes
• un choix / des choix – a choice / some choices
• un nez / des nez – a nose / some noses
• un gaz / des gaz – a gas / some gasses

French nouns ending in -ou: -s

In general, we just add an -s  to words that end in -ou, so the plural form becomes -ous.

• un bisou / des bisous  – a little kiss / some little kisses
• un clou / des clou s  – a nail / some nails
• un coup / des coup s  – a hit / some hits
• un trou / des trou s  – a hole / some holes

There are a handful of very common French nouns that are exceptions  to this rule, so let’s see them all here. Rather than adding an -s to make these plurals in French, these exceptions end in -x  instead.

• un bijou / des bijou x  – a piece of jewelry / some pieces of jewelry
• un caillou / des caillou x  – a stone / some stones
• un chou  / des chou x  – a cabbage / some cabbages
• un genou / des genou x  – a knee  / some knees
• un hibou / des hiboux  – an owl / some owls
• un joujou / des joujou x  – a children’s toy / some children’s toys
• un pou / des pou x  – a lice / some lice
• un ripou / des ripou x  – a rotten cop / dirty cops (slang)

French nouns ending in -eu, -œu, -au, -eau: -x

Just like we saw with the list of exceptions to the previous rule, adding -x  to form French plurals is common for many French nouns that end in vowel sounds.

• un feu / des feu x  – a fire / some fires
• un jeu / des jeu x  – a game / some games
• un vœu / des vœu x  – a wish / some wishes
• un tuyau / des tuyau x  – a pipe / some pipes
• un chapeau / des chapeau x  – a hat / some hats
• un cadeau / des cadeau x  – a gift / some gifts
• un couteau / des couteau x  – a knife / some knives
• un bateau / des bateau x  – a boat / some boats

There are only three exceptions  to this rule: bleu ,  pneu , and landau . These simply end in -s  to become plural.

Un bleu  can describe either a bruise  or a blue thing , while when we’re talking about fromage , le bleu  refers to a family of very flavorful cheeses. Les Bleus  is the nickname for the French national team . Un landau  is a type of baby stroller  with coverings that can fold open or closed. Un pneu  is just a tire .

• un bleu / des bleu s
• un pneu / des pneu s
• un landau / des landau s

French nouns ending in -al: -aux

For French nouns ending in -al, we have a variant on the -x ending, whereby we drop the -al and replace it with -aux . The resulting pronunciation of the plural ending for these nouns ends up resembling the pronunciation of the previous set of plurals we just saw.

• un chev al  / des chev aux  – a horse / some horses
• un journ al  / des journ aux  – a newspaper / some newspapers
• un hôpit al / des hôpit aux – a hospital / some hospitals
• un anim al / des anim aux – an animal / some animals

There are only a handful of exceptions  to this rule, most of which are fairly common French nouns. Let’s see all of them here, where their plurals simply end in -s .

• un bal / des bal s  – a formal dance event like a ball or a prom / the proms
• un carnaval / des carnaval s  – a carnival / some carnivals
• un chacal / des chacal s  – a jackal / some jackals
• un festival / des festival s  – a festival / some festivals
• un récital / des récital s  – a recital / some recitals
• un régal / des régal s  – a delight / some delights

French nouns ending in -ail: -s

The pronunciation of French words ending in -ail is different enough from those ending in -al that the default rule for their plural forms is to just add an -s .

• un détail / des détail s  – a detail / some details
• un chandail / des chandail s  – a sweater / some sweaters
• un éventail / des éventail s  – a folding fan / some folding fans
• un gouvernail / des gouvernail s  – a rudder / some rudders

In reality, not many French nouns end in -ail, so it’s just as important to be aware of the exceptions  to this general rule. These words resemble those from our previous rule, where we drop the -ail and replace it with -aux .

• un b ail  / des b aux  – a lease / some leases
• un cor ail  / des cor aux  – a coral / some corals
• un ém ail  / des ém aux  – an enamel / some enamels
• un soupir ail  / des soupir aux  – a basement window / some basement windows
• un trav ail  / des trav aux  – a job or a gig / some jobs
• un vant ail  / des vant aux  – a removable panel / some removable panels
• un vitr ail  / des vitr aux – a stained-glass window / some stained-glass windows

Highly-irregular French plurals

So far, we’ve seen all the general rules for forming the plural of French nouns. Fortunately, only three words have such irregular plurals in French that we need to point them out individually. The first two are common enough that you should definitely know them.

The French word for an eye  is un œil . But the plural of un œil  is des yeux ! You probably already knew this one if you’ve studied the parts of the body in French .

The French word for the sky  is le ciel . And if we’re talking about different skies , we’ll need un ciel  in plural: des cieux .

Finally, we have an interesting French word to refer to our ancestors . In singular, un aïeul  can refer to someone anywhere in our lineage. When we refer generally to our ancestors in plural, with forebears  or forefathers as other possible translations, we use the irregular French plural of des aïeux . When we refer specifically to our grandparents , however, the plural is des aïeuls . What’s more, if we’re just talking about our grandmothers , we use the feminine form as des aïeules !

Un aïeul  is a fairly deferential term we use for our elders, so don’t worry too much about mastering the intricacies of its use. But you should definitely memorize des yeux  and des cieux  as the French plurals for un œil  and un ciel ! We’ll end this section with the list of highly-irregular French plurals.

• un œil / des yeux – eyes
• un ciel / des cieux – skies
• un aïeul / des aïeux – ancestors
• un aïeul / des aïeuls, des aïeules – grandparents

Plurals of French nouns borrowed from other languages

As a general rule, if a French noun is still clearly linked to its foreign origin, its plural form should follow its foreign pattern .

• un paparazzo / des paparazzi
• un curriculum vitæ / des curricula vitæ
• un minimum / des minima

On the other hand, it’s common enough for foreign words to be adopted into the French language and eventually follow the regular French pluralization rules we’ve seen above.

Plurals of French titles

We’re listing these words in their own section since they seem to play by their own rules. These titles are nonetheless very common words in the language, so it’s important to know their plural forms in French.

The reason for their irregular pluralization is that they were originally formed from two words: an adjective and a noun. They’re always written as a single word in contemporary French, but their plural forms still reflect the necessary change in form to the original adjectives and to the nouns. See our posts on French adjectives  and on possessive adjectives  for more detail on those forms.

Here the full list of titles with irregular plural forms  in French.

• monsieur / messieurs – Sir
• madame / mesdames – Mrs
• mademoiselle / mesdemoiselles – miss
• gentilhomme / gentilshommes – gentleman
• bonhomme / bonshommes – fellow

Plurals of French compound nouns

Before we wrap up, we should mention the special case of compound nouns  in French. These take many forms, and there are specific pluralization rules that apply to each type. We won’t go into all the excruciating details here, but we’ll at least point out the main concepts for pluralizing French compound nouns .

The big question is which individual words within the compound noun should become plural, and which keep their original form. The most important rule  is that if the compound noun is composed of multiple nouns, we pluralize the individual nouns that indicate what’s in plural, while leaving other ones in singular if they don’t reflect what’s in plural.

• des portes-fenêtres – doors that are essentially big windows
• des pauses-café – coffee breaks
• des pommes de terre – potatoes

The same rule applies where the nouns are linked by prepositions.

• des œils-de-bœuf – round dormer windows (note that we don’t write yeux-de-bœuf!)
• des arcs-en-ciel – rainbows
• des eaux-de-vie – brandies, traditional spirits

If the compound noun’s individual words don’t necessarily reflect what is being described in plural, they all remain unchanged in plural.

• des tête-à-tête – face-to-face discussions
• des pied-à-terre – temporary or second homes
• des passe-partout – master keys, picture frame mattings

Where compound nouns include adjectives and nouns, the adjectives need to reflect the plural form. Where a compound noun includes an adverb, the adverb is always invariable. The same rules about the nouns that we saw in our previous examples still apply though!

• des coffres-forts – safes
• des sages-femmes – midwives
• des petits-beurre – butter cookies

For compound nouns that contain verbs and nouns, the verbs are unchanged while the nouns follow the same rules we’ve already seen.

• des chasse-neige – snowplows
• des tire-bouchons – corkscrews

Don’t worry if you’re unsure of the plurals of French compound nouns. Indeed, most native speakers get them wrong a lot too! If you follow the basic rules we’ve laid out here, you’ll be ahead of a lot of native French speakers!

Conclusion: Plurals in French

Today we went deep on one of the fundamentals of the language: how to make a word plural in French . We looked at the whole spectrum of French nouns, from the regular ones  that simply take -s in plural , to nouns with various endings that need different combinations ending in -x .

For each of the standard French pluralization rules, we also saw all of their exceptions . We had a special section for the three highly-irregular French plurals : yeux , cieux , and aïeux vs aïeuls . We even went into the special cases of how to pluralize words of foreign origin , and how to make compound nouns  plural in French.

If you’ve followed along here, you’re now ready to make any French noun plural! For easy reference, we recommend sharing or bookmarking this page for easy access. To sum things up for you, we’ll leave you with an easy table of all the main French pluralization rules  we saw today!

KEEP READING

Quel definition: understanding all the forms of quel in french, lingoda vs lingoculture: a review of french language classes online, the alouette song: meaning and lyrics in french and english, ordinal numbers in french: a simple guide.

French translation of 'homework'

Examples of 'homework' in a sentence homework

Trends of homework

View usage for: All Years Last 10 years Last 50 years Last 100 years Last 300 years

Browse alphabetically homework

• homeward bound
• homeward journey
• homework club
• homeworking
• All ENGLISH words that begin with 'H'

Related terms of homework

• a homework assignment
• my geography homework
• to do one’s homework
• to do one’s homework on sth
• View more related words

Quick word challenge

Quiz Review

Score: 0 / 5

Wordle Helper

Scrabble Tools

You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser or activate Google Chrome Frame to improve your experience.

Your Complete Guide to The French Plural

Grammatically, French is all over the place.

Words have genders , you have to really  make an effort to master pronominal verbs  and the grammar is chock-full of exceptions.

Whether you’re working to improve your listening  or prepare for a Francophone trip , you have to keep that complex French grammar in the back of your mind.

In this post, you’ll learn how to form the French plural as well as some exceptions to the rules, such as irregular forms and words that only exist in the plural.

The Basics: Forming the Plural

Just add “s” to the noun (and change the article), how to pronounce that “s”, when things already end in “s” (or “x”), forming the plural in irregular cases, nouns and adjectives ending in “-al”, nouns and adjectives ending in “-eau,” “-au” and “-eu”, nouns ending in “-ail”, french words that only exist in the plural, french nouns that change meaning in the plural form, how to practice the french plural.

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

Generally, the plural of French nouns and adjectives is formed by simply adding an “s” at the end. Just like in English! The definite articles le , la and l’ (the) become les   (the) in the plural. The indefinite articles un  and une (a) become des  (some)   in the plural.

Let’s take a look at some examples with French nouns:

Now let’s take a look at some examples in which French nouns are being modified by adjectives :

One more thing : An “s” must be added to both the noun and the adjective. Agreement: a fact of French life.

Spelling , and therefore pronunciation (and therefore reading aloud), can be tricky in French. For the most part, the little “s” we add at the end of nouns and adjectives is not pronounced , as is often the case with final consonants. There are, however, some exceptions in which it is pronounced.

When you see a plural adjective followed by a noun beginning with a vowel, the final “s” of the adjective is pronounced like a “z.”

• les grand s éléphants (the big elephants)
• les jeune s athlètes (the young athletes)

When you come across a plural noun followed by a plural adjective that begins with a vowel, you can pronounce the noun’s final “s” as though it were a “z.”

• les chien s agiles (the agile/graceful dogs).

I know what you’re thinking. What about words that already end in “s”? Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered.

When you come across a word that ends in “s,” its plural form is the same as its singular form. How’s that for a good deal?

The adjective gros (fat, big, large) is a case in point:

One more thing:  The definite article le still becomes les. Also, don’t forget the “s” at the end of camion !

The same deal applies when dealing with a French noun or adjective ending in “x.”

One more thing: In terms of pronunciation, the “x” and “s” endings function in the same way.

You probably saw it coming: There are many cases in which just adding an “s” to nouns and adjectives is not enough to form the plural. Sometimes, you’ve got to do a bit more. Luckily, there are some general rules that apply, depending on the endings of the nouns and adjectives.

When there’s a masculine singular noun or adjective ending in “-al,” its plural form usually ends in “-aux.”

One more thing: It’s important to note that this only applies to masculine cases. To use the feminine form of an adjective ending in “-al,” the change is regular and an “e” is added in the case of the singular, as in une revue international e   (an international magazine). For the plural we add an “s” to the noun and the adjective to get des revues international es   ([some] international magazines).

Exceptions: There are some notable exceptions whereby masculine singular nouns and adjectives ending in “-al” become plural by “regular” means, which is to say, we simply add an “s” to the ending.

• The plural of bal (ball, as in “masquerade ball,” dance) is bal s   (balls, dances).
• The plural of festival (festival) is festival s   (festivals).
• The plural of banal (banal, ordinary) is banal s .
• The plural of fatal (fatal, deadly) is fatal s .
• The plural of final (final) is final s * 

*Occasionally, you will see fin aux  (final)   used, particularly in economic and financial contexts.

One more thing:  The masculine noun mal   (ache), when used in mal de tête   (headache) becomes maux de tête   (headaches) in the plural.

The plural of singular nouns and adjectives ending in “-eau,” “-au” and “-eu” is most often formed by adding an “x” to the ending.

Exceptions: There are cases when we simply add an “s” to form the plural.

• In the case of the adjective bleu   (blue), it becomes bleus  (blue) in the plural.
• The masculine singular noun pneu (a tire) becomes pneus   (tires) in the plural.

Nouns that end in “-ail” in the singular generally end in “-ails” in the plural, but there are certain cases in which their endings are “-aux” in the plural.

There are several nouns in French that only exist in the plural. They just can’t be alone! Here’s a list of some exclusively plural nouns that you’re bound to come across. It’s important to note that each of these nouns still has a gender that you should know for the sake of agreement.

Some French nouns are just plain fickle! Their meanings change depending on whether they’re singular or plural. Here’s a list of some of the most common ones.

• Read. This may seem like a no-brainer because books, magazines and newspapers are chock-full of plural nouns and adjectives. The key, though, is reading actively .  One thing you can do is, each time you come across the plural form of a word, convert it to the singular form and vice versa.   If you’re in the mood to cozy up with a grammar book, I recommend “The Everything French Grammar Book: All the Rules You Need to Master Français”   by Laura K. Lawless.

This language learning program immerses you in the French language with authentic videos like movie trailers and inspiring talks. All of the videos come with interactive subtitles, meaning you’ll not only be able to compare the speech to the subtitles, but also click on them for extra information. Plus, you can use FluentU’s contextual video dictionary to search for specific terms and see the plural form used in context.

• Transcribe and transform. Dictées (dictations) are another great way to get cozy with French plural nouns and adjectives. A simple yet effective activity is to transcribe a short piece of audio from a podcast  and then transform it with the plural. Make sure to pay attention to pronouns and agreement!
• Quiz yourself.    Flashcards , oldies but goodies, are a great way to get used to plural nouns and adjectives. Check out these  flashcards and  this  quiz for starters.

So get cozy and get to it!

The more time spent, the more mots   (words) in your head.

Before you know it, your plural game will be on point.

Enter your e-mail address to get your free PDF!

We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe

• Cambridge Dictionary +Plus

Translation of devoirs – French–English dictionary

(Translation of devoirs from the PASSWORD French-English Dictionary © 2014 K Dictionaries Ltd)

Examples of devoirs

Word of the Day

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 audio

an occasion when a driver in a motor race stops in the pits (= area where cars are repaired)

Apples and oranges (Talking about differences, Part 2)

Learn more with +Plus

• Recent and Recommended {{#preferredDictionaries}} {{name}} {{/preferredDictionaries}}
• Definitions Clear explanations of natural written and spoken English English Learner’s Dictionary Essential British English Essential American English
• Grammar and thesaurus Usage explanations of natural written and spoken English Grammar Thesaurus
• Pronunciation British and American pronunciations with audio English Pronunciation
• English–Chinese (Simplified) Chinese (Simplified)–English
• English–Chinese (Traditional) Chinese (Traditional)–English
• English–Dutch Dutch–English
• English–French French–English
• English–German German–English
• English–Indonesian Indonesian–English
• English–Italian Italian–English
• English–Japanese Japanese–English
• English–Norwegian Norwegian–English
• English–Polish Polish–English
• English–Portuguese Portuguese–English
• English–Spanish Spanish–English
• English–Swedish Swedish–English
• Dictionary +Plus Word Lists
• PASSWORD French–English    Noun plural
• All translations

To add devoirs to a word list please sign up or log in.

Add devoirs to one of your lists below, or create a new one.

{{message}}

Something went wrong.

There was a problem sending your report.

Shopping Cart

• French Articles and Nouns

How to Make Nouns Plural in French [+13 Examples]

• Sam Denishin
• October 23, 2020

Share This Post

In this grammar lesson you will learn how to make nouns plural in French .

In this lesson you will learn about:

• how to make most nouns plural
• how to make nouns that end in -s -x, and -z plural
• how to make nouns that end in -al plural
• how to make nouns that end in -eu -au, and -eau plural
• how plural nouns are used in sentences
• how you can quiz yourself on how to make nouns plural in French
• how to practice with flashcards for how to make nouns plural in French
• how and why you should use the courses of Language Atlas to learn French

Please refer to the French A1 Curriculum to get a better overview of French grammar, if you are curious about this fits in French A1 .

By the end of the lesson you will know all about how to make nouns plural in French!

Table of Contents

How to make most nouns plural.

To make most nouns plural, simply add -s at the end.

J’ai un chat et ma sœur a trois chat s . I have a cat and my sister has three cats .

Mon frère a une maison , mais j’ai trois maison s . My brother has one house , but I have 3 houses .

Ils ont un enfant et j’ai deux enfant s . They have one child and I have 2 children .

Please note that you don’t pronounce the plural -s.

How to Make Nouns that End in -s -x, and -z Plural

If a noun ends with -s, -x, or -z, then you don’t need to do anything to make it plural. These nouns remain the same in the plural form.

Mon bra s est musclé, mais leurs bra s sont fins. My arm is muscular, but their arms are thin.

L’animal a une noi x , mais il a besoin de deux noi x . The animal has one nut , but he needs two nuts .

Mon ne z est gros, mais leurs ne z sont petits. My nose is big, but their noses are small.

How to Make Nouns that End in -al Plural

To make nouns plural that end in -al, simply change the -al to -aux.

Avez-vous un anim al de compagnie ? J’adore les anim aux de compagnie. Do you have a pet ? I love pets .

J’ai un chev al ici et deux chev aux là. I have one horse here and two horses there.

Vous avez un journ al pour moi ? – Non, mais vous pouvez acheter des journ aux au magasin là-bas. Do you have a newspaper for me? – No, but you can buy newspapers at the store over there.

Most French nouns that end in -al can be pluralized like this, but there are a few exceptions.

These exceptions take an s in the plural form.

How to Make Nouns that End in -eu -au, and -eau Plural

To make nouns plural that end in -eu, -au, or -eau, simply add an -x.

Il a les chev eux bruns. He has brown hair .

J’ai un tuy au ici et les autres tuy aux sont avec Eloïse. I have one pipe here and the other pipes are with Eloise.

Un jour, je voudrais vivre dans ce chât eau , ou dans un de ces autres chât eaux . One day, I would like to live in this castle , or one of those other castles .

Pauline, tu vas acheter un gât eau ? – Non, je voudrais acheter trois gât eaux . Pauline, are you going to buy one cake ? – No I would like to buy three cakes .

Most French nouns that end in -eu, -au, or -eau can be pluralized like this, but there are a few exceptions.

Example Sentences on How to Make Nouns Plural in French

The final section of this lesson on how to make nouns plural in French is about seeing them in action.

This is valuable because you can improve your understanding on how to make nouns plural in French through examples.

This section contains all of the previous sentences, neatly organised in one place.

Quiz Yourself on How to Make Nouns Plural in French

At the end of every lesson you can do a small quiz.

You will see the sentences of the previous chapter. It is up to you to give the correct answer.

You will either need to fill in the blanks, choose the correct multiple choice option, or both.

Once you are done the correct answer will be shown.

You can redo the quiz on how to make nouns plural in French as many times as you want!

J’ai un chat et ma sœur a trois . [I have a cat and my sister has three cats.]

Mon frère a une maison, mais j’ai trois . [My brother has one house, but I have 3 houses.]

Mon bras est musclé, mais leurs sont fins. [My arm is muscular, but their arms are thin.]

Mon nez est gros, mais leurs sont petits. [My nose is big, but their noses are small.]

J’ai un tuyau ici et les autres sont avec Eloïse. [I have one pipe here and the other pipes are with Eloise.]

Pauline, tu vas acheter un gâteau ? – Non, je voudrais acheter deux . [Pauline, are you going to buy one cake? – No I would like to buy two cakes.]

Time’s up

How to Practice With Flashcards for This Lesson

Using flashcards is an absolute necessity when it comes to learning a language!

It is the best way to memorize what you learn, you can personalize your progression because it adapts to your actions, and all flashcards have audio to improve your hearing and pronunciation.

Please read our article on how to learn a new language for more information on flashcards and the best way to learn a new language.

There are two ways to practice with Flashcards for this lesson.

• The Flashcards in our Courses

Anki is a free software with which you can create and practice flashcards.

After you have downloaded Anki for free, you can get our French A1 Anki Deck .

This Anki Deck contains 3,764 flashcards with which you can practice absolutely everything for French A1.

All the flashcards have text, images, explanations, and audio.

You can also use our courses that have flashcards integrated alongside lessons with audio, quizzes and much more!

However, I am sure you are wondering, what are your courses, and why should I take them?

The Courses of Language Atlas

Have you ever wondered what the best way is to learn a new language?

I have been learning languages for over 20+ years and I was always frustrated with books, courses, and classes that I had tried.

It never really seemed to work for me.

I wanted to learn a language in the most effective and efficient way, and there was nothing out there for me.

So I thought, “ why not make something myself? “.

Using my experience and by doing research I created Language Atlas, a platform where people can learn French and Spanish in the most effective and efficient way.

I created free lessons and quizzes so that there would always be a easy and accessible way for people to learn or brush up on their language skills.

However, I also created courses that are much more comprehensive and in-depth.

These courses are easy to follow, clear, and allow you to become fluent in the most effective and efficient way.

The courses of Language Atlas have:

• 800+ Lessons with audio
• 800+ Quizzes
• 10,000 Flashcards with explanations, images, and audio
• A gamified way of learning a new language
• A vibrant community (including support from me)

You can register for free and try the French A0/A1 and Spanish A0/A1 Courses for free!

This includes over 60 lessons and quizzes, 500 flashcards that adapt to how you learn, and access to the community (including support from me).

All you have to do is study 30 minutes a day and you will be fluent in no time!

Don’t miss out – register for free and start learning!

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Don't miss out on any new French Lessons! You will also get a free copy of our graphical overview of all French Verb Tenses, and the French A0/A1 Anki Deck!

More To Explore

10 Spanish Inventions That Changed Our World

Since the Golden Age of Al Andalus, the world has benefitted from many Spanish inventions and discoveries that made our world a better place.     

10 Beautiful Towns To Visit In France

There are countless towns to visit in France that pack in more wow factor per square metre than most cities. We’re talking atmospheric time capsules,

Do You have any feedback? let me know!

I would love to know how I can make learning Languages easier for you

How do you make French nouns plural? - Easy Learning Grammar French

• Most French nouns form their plural by adding an -s to their singular form.
• If the singular noun ends in -s, -x or -z , no further -s is added in the plural.
• If the singular noun ends in -al or -ail , the plural usually ends in -aux .
• nouns ending in -eau
• most nouns ending in -eu
• a FEW nouns ending in -ou (MOST nouns ending in -ou add -s as usual)

Quick word challenge

Quiz Review

Score: 0 / 5

• Learn English - Index
• English Course
• Teaching Resources
• Useful Videos
• English Idioms
• Corrected Writing Examples
• Learn English from Spanish
• Learn Arabic
• Learn Spanish
• Learn French
• Learn Italian
• Learn German
• Learn Japanese
• Learn Chinese
• Learn Russian
• View Complete List of 45+
• Morse Code - Index
• How to Learn Morse Code
• Morse Code Translator
• I Love You in Morse Code
• Sign Language - Index
• American Sign Language
• British Sign Language
• Find a Tutor

French Nouns, Gender & Plural

Nouns, gender & plural, gender (masculine & feminine).

Nouns in French are either masculine or feminine; for some reason (bread) is masculine in French; (spoon) is feminine, so the best thing to do is to memorize words with their gender by adding the indefinite or definite articles to them, for example the word bread should be memorized as “le pain” and not only as “pain”. The good news is that some words may give you a clue about their gender, especially their ending, for example: 

Nouns ending in: -eau, -eaux, -age -ment are usually masculine,

Nouns ending in -e, -ure, -ence, -ance, -té, and -ette, -ion (especially -sion, tion ) are usually feminine.

Nouns referring to a sex, for example “une femme / a woman” is obviously feminine …

That doesn’t means that this is a rule you should follow, for example nouns ending in “-e” are not always feminine.

Now to make the feminine out of the masculine you need to follow these simple steps:

Many French nouns form their feminine by adding an “ e ” to the end of the masculine. Student (masculine) = étudiant, Student (feminine) = étudiant e .

Nouns already ending in an “ e ” in the masculine don’t change in the feminine. Other nouns change their - eur ending to - euse for the feminine, for example: a seller = un vendeur (masucline), une vendeu se (feminine).

To form the plural in French most nouns simply add an extra “ s ” {a friend = un ami, friends = des ami s }

Nouns ending in -eu, -eau and -au usually form the plural by adding an exta “ x ”, {the cake = le gât eau , cakes = les gât eaux } Nouns ending in -al usually form the plural with -aux : {animal = un anim al , animals = des anim aux } Nouns already ending in -s, -x, or -z in their masculine form do not change in the plural: {the nose = le ne z , noses = les ne z }

Nouns ending in -an, -en and -on take an extra “ ne ” in the singular feminine. Dog (male) = chien, Dog (female) = chien ne .

And “ nes ” in the plural feminine: Dogs (male) = chiens, Dogs (female) = chien nes .

Some French Nouns

Conjunctions and negation, comparatives and superlatives, prepositions, french test (pdf), how-to's.

• Rules/Help/FAQ Help/FAQ
• Members Current visitors
• Interface Language

Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.

Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.

• French and English Grammar / Grammaire française et anglaise

FR: I'm sorry for not having handed in my homework sooner

• Thread starter Silver Violette
• Start date Nov 1, 2013

Silver Violette

• Nov 1, 2013

Senior Member

Je regrette de ne pas (vous) avoir rendu mon devoir plus tôt. With the COD, that'd be: Je regrette de ne pas (vous) l'avoir rendu. Assuming it's only one assignment, use "le"; if two or more, then "les". Bien à vous, AL  

Merci beaucoup! You've cleared that up, as I also wasn't sure if it was possible to put the 'vous' in and whether to use 'le' or 'les'. One last question though: is it better to use the verb rendre (as you have done) than remettre in this context, and why? Merci pour votre aide, SV  

J.F. de TROYES

I think both of these verbs can be used with the same meanin.  

lamy08 said: Oui, c'est pareil, même si "rendre" est ce que j'utiliserais de prime abord. Attention toutefois au participe passé si vous utilisez le pluriel "les": ... de ne pas vous les avoir rendu s . On ne doit pas réfléchir à cela si on utilise le verbe "remettre": ... de ne pas vous les avoir remis . Si on n'est pas sûr de soi en matière d'accord des participes passés, cela peut aider ! Click to expand...

Le passé composé de "rendre" se conjugue avec "avoir" et le participe passé suit les règles de concordance habituelles: J'ai rend u le(s) devoir(s). Le devoir que j'ai rend u . Les devoirs que j'ai rendu s . Les épreuves écrites que j'ai rendu es . Devoir(s): singulier ou pluriel? On utilise le singulier pour un travail en particulier. S'il y a plusieurs travaux, on met le pluriel évidemment: Je fais mes devoirs dès que je rentre à la maison. Avez-vous beaucoup de devoir s avec Monsieur X...? Réponse: Oui, il nous en a encore donné un hier à rendre pour demain! Et ses devoirs sont toujours très longs ...! Attention que l'expression "faire son devoir" n'a pas du tout le même sens: ici, il s'agit d'un devoir moral. J'avais promis de rendre visite à X... et j'y suis allé(e). J'ai fait mon devoir.  

Silver Violette said: Pourquoi serait-il 'rendus'? Est-ce que vous voulez dire 'rendre' utilise être pour le passé composée, alors il faut respecter la concordance? Aussi, il vaut mieux dire ‘le’ ou ‘les’ si est pour un devoir seulement ? Je pense qu’on dit toujours ‘les devoirs’, ne jamais ‘un devoir’. (Je n'apprends le français pas depuis longtemps - je suis desolée si ce que j'ai écrit n'est pas exacte!) Merci pour votre réponse, SV Click to expand...

Thanks! You're right, I haven't learnt of that particular rule yet. That was why I was getting confused. Now this is what I have: Je regrette de mes devoirs sont en retard et de ne pas vous les avoir rendus plus tôt. Is this a correct use of 'rendus' taking into account the rule? SV  

Silver Violette said: Thanks! You're right, I haven't learnt of that particular rule yet. That was why I was getting confused. Now this is what I have: Je regrette de mes devoirs sont en retard et de ne pas vous les avoir rendus plus tôt. Is this a correct use of 'rendus' taking into account the rule? SV Click to expand...

Or perhaps rather this (from post #2) 'Je regrette de ne pas (vous) avoir rendu mon devoir/mes devoirs plus tôt.' Because surely you need the word 'devoir(s)' rather than just 'le/les'.  

• Nov 2, 2013

Hello, I realise that this is coming late, but to translate hand in I personally prefer « remettre ». I'm not saying that rendre is wrong, but to me, the verb is closer to give back/return. I would have said : Je suis désolée de ne pas (vous) avoir remis mon devoir plus tôt.  

• Nov 3, 2013

Enquiring Mind

Just for the benefit of all the English learners too, the present tense ~ing form works equally well too: "....for not handing in my homework earlier.."  

bottom_desktop desktop:[300x250]