In French, every noun is either masculine or feminine — even objects. The article in front of a noun tells you its gender and number. You learn nouns together with their article, like a matched pair.
Definite articles: le, la, l', les
Use definite articles to talk about something specific or about things in general. They correspond to English 'the'.
| Masculine | Feminine | Before vowel/h | Plural | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Article | le | la | l' | les |
| Example | le livre | la table | l'ami(e) | les enfants |
- le chat — the cat
- la maison — the house
- l'école — the school
- les amis — the friends
Indefinite articles: un, une, des
Use indefinite articles to talk about something unspecific (a, an, some).
| Masculine | Feminine | Plural | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Article | un | une | des |
| Example | un livre | une table | des amis |
Useful endings — but never 100%
Most nouns ending in -e are feminine; most others are masculine. Endings like -tion, -sion, -té are usually feminine. Endings like -ment, -age, -eau are usually masculine.
Choose the correct article: ___ livre est intéressant.
Choose the correct article: ___ étudiante est française.
Which is feminine?
___ maison de Marie est grande.
Je voudrais ___ café, s'il vous plaît.
Tu as ___ amis à Paris ?
___ enfants jouent dans le parc.
Which article goes with 'nation' (feminine, -tion)?
Make it plural
le livre
Make it plural
une fille