Noun gender
In general, the feminine part of a masculine word is formed by adding an -e at the end of the word. If the noun already ends with an e, do not change the spelling of the noun. We recognize that the noun is put in the feminine by the article in front of the noun (e.g.: un élève (pupil), une élève). A masculine noun has an article in the singular such as un, le, l', ce, cet, ton, mon and son. In the feminine, these articles become une, la, l', cette, ta, ma and sa..
un apprenti => une apprentie
un marchand => une marchande
Adding an "e" at the end of the noun results in sound changes that are reflected in the spelling of the noun.
- Nouns in -er changed to -ère: un cuisinier => une cuisinière
- Some masculine nouns will double the final consonant: un chien => un chienne
- Nouns in -eur have their feminine in -euse: le coiffeur => la coiffeuse
- Some nouns ending with an -e sometimes have their feminine in -esse: un prince => une princesse
- Increasingly, we can feminize the professions: un professeur => une professeure
Some names have a completely irregular feminine and the end is completely changed:
un loup => une louve
un veuf => une veuve
un vieux => une vieille
un fou => une folle
un jumeau => une jumelle
It is also possible to have a completely different feminine word than the masculine word.
un oncle => une tante
un taureau => une vache
un coq => une poule
Also note that "crapeau" (toads) and "grenouille" (frogs) are two different species that have nothing to do with this rule, as are "hibou" (owls) and "chouette" (owls).
And finally, to put it simply, we still have words that don't have a feminine side: un témoin, un bourreau, un bandit, un assassin...
Terminations of feminine and masculine nouns
As we have seen, female nouns generally end with an -e. If we already have an -e sound, we simply add an -e for feminine words: une tournée, la durée. Exception: l'acné, la clé, la psyché.
Feminine nouns ending with the sound "ail" end with "aille" maille, abeille, feuille.
Exception: masculine nouns derived from "feuille" (leaf) end with "ille" (exception cerfeuil): portefeuille, millefeuille, chèvrefeuille.
Examples of female nouns with the sound "è": une plaie, une raie. Exception: la forêt, la paix
Examples with the "i" sound: la comédie, la mairie. Exception: la brebis, la nuit, la souris, la fourmi.
| Terminaison | Gender | Example |
|---|---|---|
| -ueil | Masculine | un accueil
un cercueil l'orgueil |
| -euille | Feminine for feuille Male for compounds such as millefeuille and portefeuille |
le chèvrefeuille |
| -euil | Masculine | un fauteuil un écureuil un chevreuil |
| -eille | Feminine | une abeille une corbeille |
| -eil | Masculine | un orteil le soleil un conseil le sommeil |
| -ail | Masculine | le travail un gouvernail un chandail |
| -aille | Feminine | une médaille la ferraille la volaille |
Other special cases of feminine words
Words ending in -te, -tié and -eur don't take e at the end.
la liberté, l'actualité, la simplicité, la moitié, l'ardeur, l'odeur
Exception:
- la dictée, la jetée, la montée, la pâtée, la portée, la demeure, l'heure.
- les noms féminins qui indiquent une quantité ou un contenu : une cuillerée, une brouettée, une charretée...
Finally, note these masculine words that are spelled with -ée: l'apogée, le lycée, le pygmée, le scarabée.
- In the general case, a -e is added to indicate the feminine mark.
- Careful attention is paid to changes in spelling as in "la caissière", "la paysanne"...
- The feminine words in -té, -tié and -eur do not take e.
- More and more, we can feminize the professions: la députée.