/yn/

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Translation

a, an (feminine); one (feminine)

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Word origin

The feminine of un, from Latin una, the feminine of unus ('one').

Origin
Latin
Root
una
English cognates
one, unit, unity

Examples

.

I live in a small house.

.

There is a magnificent church in the centre of the town.

filante .

I saw a shooting star last night in the sky.

.

I would like a cup of tea with a little milk.

, .

Once a year, we go on holiday to the mountains.

is the feminine singular indefinite article in French, the counterpart of masculine un. It marks an unspecified single feminine noun: une tasse (a cup), une église (a church). Unlike le and la, indefinite articles in French do not elide before a vowel; une keeps its full form everywhere, but the final e disappears in pronunciation when the next word begins with a vowel, giving a smooth liaison: une étoile sounds like un-étoile.

The plural of both un and une is des, so the masculine/feminine distinction collapses as soon as you go plural. Une also turns up as the feminine of the number "one" in counting (une, deux, trois when the noun being counted is feminine), and in the fixed phrase une fois (once). See the French articles guide for how all four indefinite and definite articles interact.

Where this fits

Used in

Stories

(82)

Grammar articles

(48)

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French · Free printables

une: worksheet, infographic and listicle

Free printable study downloads for the French word "une" (a, an (feminine); one (feminine)): a worksheet with the answer key built in, an infographic, and a sentence listicle. Open any one to view, print or save.

This word is taught in chapter 1, lesson 4: More people, more words.