How to recognize between a masculine and feminine ?
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Hello English speakers who want to Learn French 🙂 !
In this article I share with you How to recognize if a word is masculine or feminine.
There is not a rule that says "this word is masculine and this word is feminine" but several indications!
To remember wich noun is masculine or feminine, the best way is to practice is to talk as much as possible.
Masculine and feminine : the letter e
- In French the letter e represents the feminine, in a general way.
|
Examples |
|
Nouns |
|
Un garçon → a boy Masculine Une fille → a girl Feminine Un ami → a friend Masculine Une amie → a friend Feminine Un français → a french man Masculine Un française → a french woman Feminine |
Here are some exceptions :
Un arbre → a tree → masculine
Une maison → a house → féminine
Un belge → a belgium man → masculine
Masculine and Feminine : Adjectives
- Adding the letter e works well, in a general way.
Examples
|
Masculines nouns |
Feminines nouns |
|
Un livre anglais → an English boook Un joli tableau → a nice painting |
Une voiture anglaise → an English car Une jolie peinture → a nice painting |
- But there are many other cases
Examples
| Masculines nouns | Feminines nouns |
|
Un café italien → an Italian coffee Du chocolat belge → Belgian chocolate Il est beau → he is handsome |
Une voiture italienne → an italian car Une bière belge → a Belgian beer Elle est belle → she is beautiful |
Masculine and feminine : the Nouns
A noun that ends with the letter e is not necessarily feminine (un arbre → a tree, ...)
A noun that does not end with the letter e is not necessarily masculine (une maison → a house, ...)
The general rules
These rules are general rules, which mean that it works most of the time, so not all the time !
|
Masculine |
Feminine |
| Nouns ending in
-ment, -phone, -scope, -eau, -teur, -isme, -age Exceptions : une plage (a beach), une page (a page), une image (a picture) |
Nouns ending in
-tion/-sion, -ée, -ique, -té, -ie, -oire, -ure, -ade, -ette, -ence, -ance |
Exercises : Recognize if these words are masculine or feminine words
Parlement (parliament) / Médicament (medecine) / Gouvernement (Government)
Téléphone (phone) / Interphone (intercom)
Télescope (telescope)
Bureau (office) / Bateau (boat) / Couteau (knife) / Château (castle)
Ordinateur (computer) / Aspirateur (vacuum)
Fromage (cheese) / Voyage (trip) / Massage (massage)
Télévision (television) / Addition (addition) / Solution (solution) / Invention (invention)
Beauté (beauty) / Réalité (reality) /Société (society)
Culture (culture) / Sculpture (sculpture) / Peinture (painting)
Casquette (cap)/ Raquette (racket) / Bicyclette (bicycle)
Différence (difference) / Référence (reference) / Connaissance (knowledge)
Ouverture (opening)
Baignade (swim)
Gargarisme (gargle) / Prisme (prism)
Bagage (luggage)
Panique (panic)
Dictée (dictation)
Chapelure (breadcrumbs)
Changement (change)
Passoire (strainer)
Argument (argument)
Connexion (connexion)
Mariage (wedding)
Publication (publication)
Gaspillage (waste)
Fonction (function)
Remerciement (thanks)
Jardinage (gardening)
Inscription (Registration)
Partage (sharing)
Answers
Masculine
Un Parlement / Un Médicament / Un Gouvernement
Un Téléphone / Un Interphone
Un Télescope
Un Bureau / Un Bateau / Un Couteau / Un Château
Un Ordinateur / Un Aspirateur
Un Fromage / Un Voyage / Un Massage
Féminine
Une Télévision / Une Addition / Une Solution / Une Invention
Une Beauté / Une Réalité /Une Société
Une Culture / Une Sculpture / Une Peinture
Une Casquette / Une Raquette / Une Bicyclette
Une Différence / Une Référence / Une Connaissance
Une Ouverture –> féminin
Une Baignade –> féminin
Un Gargarisme –> masculin
Un Bagage –> masculin
La Panique –> féminin
Une Dictée –> féminin
La Chapelure –> féminin
Un Changement –> masculin
Une Passoire –> féminin
Un Argument –> masculin
Une Connexion –> féminin
Un Mariage –> masculin
Une Publication –> féminin
Un Gaspillage –> masculin
Une Fonction –> féminin
Un Remerciement –> masculin
Le Jardinage –> masculin
Une Inscription –> féminin
Un Partage –> masculin
Thanks for reading this article 🙂
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Thomas Ricomard
Thomas Ricomard specializes in teaching French as a foreign language. He has been providing private lessons since 2015, both in-person and online (via Skype). He taught at the Popular University of the Canton of Geneva (Switzerland) from 2015 to 2018, instructing several groups of 20 students from around the world (United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Spain, Brazil, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mexico, etc.), ranging from beginner to intermediate levels (A1 to B2). With a Master’s degree in clinical and cognitive psychology from the University of Geneva, his knowledge of psychology allows him to tailor his teaching methods for optimal learning, taking into account factors such as visual memory versus auditory memory. He expresses his passion for the French language through writing texts, including poetry and songs, which he presents publicly at numerous music and slam events.