French Noun Plurals: la chose, les choses and the Exceptions

The written rule takes ten seconds: add -s. la chose, les choses - the thing, the things. The rule that matters is that the -s is silent, so in speech the plural lives in the article. Here is the whole system on one card.

Every row but -al, -ail and the handful sounds the same in the plural: only the article changes.

The written rule: add -s

For the overwhelming majority of nouns, the plural is the singular plus -s.

In a sentence: Les enfants mangent. - The children are eating.

The spoken rule: the article carries the plural

Say these pairs out loud. The noun does not change; only the article does.

So le and la become les, and un and une become des. In English you hear the noun change (cat, cats); in French you hear the article.

12

1. 1la pomme
2. 2les pommes

Say both aloud: la pomme, les pommes. The word pomme sounds the same; only la to les tells you there are more.

There is one bonus clue. Before a vowel, liaison sounds a z between the plural article and the noun:

• les amis - the friends, said "layz-ami"
• des enfants - (some) children, said "dayz-ahn-fahn"

That z is the ghost of the plural -s, and it only appears before a vowel.

Exception 1: -eau and -eu take -x

Nouns in -eau and -eu add a silent -x instead of -s.

The rarer -au nouns do the same: les tuyaux (the pipes). A few take a plain -s: les pneus (tyres), les bleus (bruises).

Exception 2: -al becomes -aux

Most nouns in -al swap the ending for -aux. This is the main plural you can hear on the noun: -al against -o.

A few take -s instead: les festivals (the festivals). The -aux pattern is the default.

Exception 3: the seven -ou nouns that take -x

Most -ou nouns add -s: les trous (the holes), les clous (the nails). Exactly seven take -x, and French schoolchildren chant them:

Exception 4: a few -ail nouns become -aux

Most -ail nouns are regular: le détail, les détails (the detail, the details). A small group swaps to -aux like the -al nouns, and the one you will meet constantly is le travail, les travaux - the work, the roadworks.

Exception 5: nouns in -s, -x and -z never change

If the singular already ends in -s, -x or -z, the plural is spelled the same. Only the article moves.

In a sentence: Les prix sont bons. - The prices are good. Note that temps, one of the commonest nouns in French, is in this group.

The genuinely irregular ones

A very short list changes shape entirely. Learn them as pairs:

Painters and weather forecasters say les ciels (skies). In the last two rows, the mon and ma hidden inside the word go plural too. Mesdames, messieurs, bonsoir. - Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.

Two more are odd in sound only: un œuf, des œufs (an egg, eggs) and un bœuf, des bœufs. The f is said in the singular and traditionally silent in the plural, with the vowel closing too (some speakers now keep the f).

Mistakes English speakers make

Saying the -s of choses aloud is the other classic slip: it is silent.

What to do next

1. Say le, les and un, des aloud until luh and lay are automatic.
2. Learn the seven -ou nouns as a chant.
3. Read French adjective agreement: adjectives go plural too (beau, beaux).