French Adjective Agreement

French adjectives have four forms - masculine singular, feminine singular, masculine plural, feminine plural - and they agree with the noun on both axes.

The four-form pattern

Masc sg	Fem sg	Masc pl	Fem pl

grand

Build the feminine from the masculine, then add -s for the plural of either. Adjectives ending in -s or -x already don't change in the masculine plural (français -> français).

The feminine endings

The default is add -e. Then there are six predictable shortcuts:

Masculine ending	Feminine ending	Example
default	+ e	->
-e (already)	no change	->
-x	-	->
-el	-	->
-	-nne	->
-on	-nne	->
-f	-ve	-> active
-er	-ère	->

These shortcuts cover most adjectives you'll meet. A small irregular set has to be learned per word: / , / , / , / , sec / , / , / , long / , / , / .

The plural

Default: add -s (petite -> petites, grand -> grands).
Already ends in -s or -x: no change in the masculine plural (français -> français, heureux -> heureux). Feminine plural still adds -s (françaises, heureuses).
Ends in -al: masculine plural becomes - (national -> nationaux, principal -> principaux). Feminine plural is regular (nationales).
Ends in -: masculine plural adds -x (beau -> beaux, nouveau -> nouveaux). Feminine plural still adds -s (belles, nouvelles).

Position: after the noun by default

Most French adjectives go after the noun.

(a red car)
(an interesting book)
(an intelligent girl)
(a French man)

The BAGS set: before the noun

A small closed group sits before the noun. The mnemonic BAGS covers them:

Beauty: beau, joli
Age: jeune, vieux, nouveau
Goodness: bon, mauvais
Size: grand, petit, gros, long, haut

Examples:

(a beautiful car)
(a new book)
(a good friend)
(a small problem)

When two BAGS adjectives stack, the order is flexible: or are both heard, with a slight preference for size + beauty.

The vowel-buffered masculine forms

Three BAGS adjectives have a third masculine singular form used before a vowel or silent h:

Masc sg	Before vowel	Fem sg	Masc pl	Fem pl

Same pattern as vs - bridge the vowels.

Worked examples

chat . (The small black cat is sleeping.)
ensoleillée. (A lovely sunny day.)
à Lyon. (My French friends live in Lyon.)
C' . (It's an old story.)
restaurants. (Those are good restaurants.)
. (She's wearing a white dress and black shoes.)

Common mistakes English speakers make

Forgetting to agree the adjective in writing: intelligent instead of . The plural -s is silent in speech but mandatory in writing. Putting every adjective after the noun and writing when it should be . And forgetting the irregular masculine-before-vowel forms - is wrong, it's .

une maison (blanc) (blanc)
une belle ensoleillée (journée, with the adjective beau before a feminine noun) (beau -> belle)
un ami (vieux, before a masculine noun starting with a vowel) (vieux)
des voitures (noir) (noir)
ma soeur (premier) (premier)
une maison (petit) (petit, a BAGS adjective before the noun)
des amis (français) (français already ends in -s)
un livre (bon) (bon, masculine singular, before the noun)
une voiture (grand) (grand -> grande, before the noun)

Translation drill

0/7

Translate into French, agreeing each adjective with its noun.

a white dress
the small black cat
a beautiful sunny day
my French friends
a good book
a big white house
an old friend (masculine)

Matching

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Match each masculine singular adjective to its feminine singular form.

Frequently asked questions

How do you make a French adjective feminine?

The default is add -e to the masculine form: petit -> petite, grand -> grande, français -> française. Adjectives already ending in -e don't change (rouge, jeune, facile stay the same in both genders). Then there are six predictable patterns: -x -> -se (heureux -> heureuse), -el -> -elle (naturel -> naturelle), -en -> -nne (italien -> italienne), -f -> -ve (actif -> active), -er -> -ère (premier -> première), and -on -> -nne (bon -> bonne). Beyond that, a small set are irregular and have to be learned per word (beau / belle, vieux / vieille, nouveau / nouvelle, blanc / blanche).

Where does a French adjective go - before or after the noun?

After the noun is the default. 'Une voiture rouge', 'un livre intéressant', 'une fille intelligente'. About a dozen common adjectives go before the noun instead - the BAGS set: Beauty (beau, joli), Age (jeune, vieux, nouveau), Goodness (bon, mauvais), and Size (grand, petit, gros, long, haut). 'Une belle voiture', 'un nouveau livre', 'un petit chat'. A handful change meaning depending on position - ancien before a noun means former, after it means ancient; grand before means great, after means tall. Foundation tier sticks with the position rules; meaning shifts are Higher-tier.