Understanding Adjective Agreement
French adjectives must agree with the nouns they modify in both gender (masculine/feminine) and number (singular/plural). This creates up to four different forms for each adjective.
Unlike English adjectives which never change, French adjectives are like chameleons - they adapt to match their nouns perfectly.
This agreement is fundamental to French grammar and affects pronunciation, spelling, and meaning.
Examples
un chat noir (a black cat - masculine singular)
une chatte noire (a black female cat - feminine singular)
des chats noirs (some black cats - masculine plural)
des chattes noires (some black female cats - feminine plural)
The Four Forms of Adjectives
Most French adjectives have four possible forms to match all gender and number combinations:
Regular Adjective Agreement Pattern
Here's how regular adjectives change (using "petit" as example):
Four Forms of "Petit" (Small)
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine Singular | petit | un petit chat (a small cat) |
| Feminine Singular | petite | une petite chatte (a small female cat) |
| Masculine Plural | petits | des petits chats (some small cats) |
| Feminine Plural | petites | des petites chattes (some small female cats) |
Formation Rules
Regular adjectives follow these patterns:
Feminine: Add -e to masculine form
grand → grande (big)
Masculine Plural: Add -s to masculine singular
grand → grands (big)
Feminine Plural: Add -s to feminine singular
grande → grandes (big)
Regular Agreement Patterns
Most French adjectives follow predictable patterns for agreement:
Standard Pattern: Add -e for Feminine
The most common pattern adds -e for feminine forms:
Regular -e Feminine Pattern
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| grand/grande | grands/grandes | big |
| intelligent/intelligente | intelligents/intelligentes | intelligent |
| français/française | français/françaises | French |
| vert/verte | verts/vertes | green |
Adjectives Already Ending in -e
Adjectives ending in -e have the same masculine and feminine forms:
Same Masculine/Feminine Forms
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| rouge | rouge/rouges | red (same for m/f) |
| jeune | jeune/jeunes | young (same for m/f) |
| moderne | moderne/modernes | modern (same for m/f) |
| rapide | rapide/rapides | fast (same for m/f) |
Special Agreement Patterns
Some adjectives have special patterns for forming feminine and plural:
Double Consonant + -e Pattern
Some adjectives double the final consonant before adding -e:
Double Consonant Pattern
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| bon/bonne | bons/bonnes | good |
| gros/grosse | gros/grosses | big/fat |
| ancien/ancienne | anciens/anciennes | old/former |
| européen/européenne | européens/européennes | European |
-eux → -euse Pattern
Adjectives ending in -eux change to -euse for feminine:
-eux → -euse Pattern
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| heureux/heureuse | heureux/heureuses | happy |
| sérieux/sérieuse | sérieux/sérieuses | serious |
| dangereux/dangereuse | dangereux/dangereuses | dangerous |
| nerveux/nerveuse | nerveux/nerveuses | nervous |
-er → -ère Pattern
Adjectives ending in -er change to -ère for feminine:
premier/première (first)
dernier/dernière (last)
cher/chère (expensive/dear)
fier/fière (proud)
Irregular Adjective Agreement
Some common adjectives have completely irregular forms that must be memorized:
Common Irregular Adjectives
These important adjectives have unique patterns:
Irregular Adjective Forms
| Pronoun | Conjugation | English |
|---|---|---|
| beau/belle | beaux/belles | beautiful |
| nouveau/nouvelle | nouveaux/nouvelles | new |
| vieux/vieille | vieux/vieilles | old |
| blanc/blanche | blancs/blanches | white |
| long/longue | longs/longues | long |
| fou/folle | fous/folles | crazy |
Special Forms Before Vowels
Some masculine adjectives have special forms before vowel sounds:
un beau garçon BUT un bel homme
a handsome boy BUT a handsome man
un nouveau livre BUT un nouvel ami
a new book BUT a new friend
un vieux chat BUT un vieil homme
an old cat BUT an old man
Position and Agreement
Adjective agreement works the same whether the adjective comes before or after the noun:
Examples
une belle maison (a beautiful house - before noun)
une maison moderne (a modern house - after noun)
des petites voitures rouges (some small red cars)
Both adjectives agree with feminine plural noun
Multiple Adjectives
When multiple adjectives modify one noun, each must agree independently:
une grande maison blanche (a big white house)
Both adjectives agree with feminine singular
des petits chats noirs (some small black cats)
Both adjectives agree with masculine plural
Agreement with Mixed Gender Groups
When an adjective modifies a group with both masculine and feminine nouns, use the masculine plural form:
Examples
Le père et la mère sont contents. (The father and mother are happy.)
Mixed group → masculine plural adjective
Les garçons et les filles sont intelligents. (The boys and girls are intelligent.)
Mixed group → masculine plural adjective
Mon frère et ma sœur sont grands. (My brother and sister are tall.)
Mixed group → masculine plural adjective
Common Agreement Mistakes
Here are frequent errors students make with adjective agreement:
1. Forgetting feminine forms: Using masculine with feminine nouns
2. Missing plural agreement: Not making adjectives plural
3. Wrong irregular forms: Using regular patterns for irregular adjectives
4. Mixed gender confusion: Wrong agreement with mixed groups
Examples
❌ une grand maison → ✅ une grande maison
Wrong: must use feminine form
❌ des petit chats → ✅ des petits chats
Wrong: must use plural form
❌ un beau homme → ✅ un bel homme
Wrong: must use special form before vowel
❌ des voitures rouge → ✅ des voitures rouges
Wrong: adjective must be plural