Forming Plural from Singular Adjectives

The plural of most adjectives is formed by adding s to the singular of the masculine or
feminine adjective, as shown in Table 1 (feminine form in parentheses).

An adjective modifying two or more nouns of different genders uses the masculine
plural: L'homme et sa femme sont gnreux. (The man and his wife are generous.)

Masculine singular adjectives that end in s or x

If a masculine singular adjective ends in s or x, the singular and plural are identical, as
shown in Table 2.

Masculine singular adjectives that end in al

For most masculine adjectives ending in al, change al to aux in the plural:

For most masculine adjectives ending in , change to in the plural:

Masculine irregular singular adjectives

Both masculine singular forms of beau (bel), nouveau (nouvel), and vieux (vieil) have one and the
same plural form. (Note that des becomes debefore the adjective). See the Masculine irregular
adjectives article for a better understanding of using bel, nouvel, and vieil.

Both masculine singular forms of , and have one and the same plural form. (Note that becomes
before the adjective). See the Masculine irregular adjectives article for a better understanding
of using , and .
The adjective tout (all) is irregular in the masculine plural:

Singular: tout
Plural: tous

How to Translate French Words into Plural Form

By Dianne Brooks

It is not difficult to learn how to translate french words to plural form.

As in any other language, you must learn some basic rules, as well as
the exceptions and you will be able to speak and write accurately.

When and How to Translate French Words to the Plural

Form
In the French language nouns can be masculine or feminine, singluar
or plural. Nouns usually must agree in gender le genre as well as
number le nombre.
Le pluriel is used when referring to more than one thing or person.
There are plural nouns noms, pronouns pronoms, articles articles and
adjectives adjectifs.
One of the very first things you learn in French is that there are
singular and plural articles and pronouns. The singular masculin article
is le, the singular feminine article is la. The plural of both is les.

The singular pronouns are je (I), tu (you), il(he) and elle (she). The
plural pronouns are:
vous (you)
nous (we)
ils(they, masculine)
elles(they, feminine)
If you are referring to a group of men and women, you would use ils.

Plural of Adjectives and Nouns

In general, in order to form the plural you add an s to all words except
words that already end in s, x, or z in their singular form.
Regular Adjectives and Nouns
Singular

Plural

la carte(the card)

les cartes

petite(small)

petites

le vers(the verse)

le vers

malheureux(unhappy)

malheureux

le nez(the nose)

les nez

Irregular Plurals
Some French words require that you change the ending completely.

aux and x endings

Some words that end in al become aux in the plural form.

al to aux
Singular

Plural

journal

journaux

animal

animaux

royal

royaux

spcial

spciaux

radical

radicaux

There are some exceptions to this rule. The following are examples of
words that end in al but take an s:
bal(s)
banal(s)
festival(s)
banal(s)
final(s)
Some words that end in ail become aux in the plural form. For
example travail(work) becomes travaux. On the other hand other
words that end in ail take an ssuch as dtail (detail) which
becomes dtails.
Words with the following endings take x instead of s when they
become plural:
bijou becomes bijoux (jewerly)
rideau becomes rideaux (curtains)

 neveu becomes neveux(nephews)

noyau becomes noyaux(stones, pits)
The exceptions are bleu(s) (blue) and pneux(s)(tire)

Extremely Irregular Plurals

Some words are very irregular but are then easy to memorize:
oeil (eye) becomes yeux
ciel (sky) becomes cieux
monsieur becomes messieurs
madame becomes mesdames
mademoiselle becomes mesdemoiselles

Compound Words
There are some special rules for words that are formed by putting two
separate words together with an - in between. Usually if the compound
word consists of apreposition or a verb those words do not change
form. For example:
Le gratte-ciel de New York sont plus hauts que ceux de Los
Angeles. (The skyscrapers in New York are higher than those
in Los Angeles.)
Elles passent leur aprs-midi la campagne.(They spent
their afternoon in the country.)
Compound words formed by adjectives and nouns do change form.

English Words in French

There are many English words that have been adopted by the French
language. In order to make these words plural add an s or es:
supermarch becomes supermarchs
sandwich becomes sandwiches
pique-nique becomes pique-niques''

Words That Do Not Change Form

Some words never become plural such as family names or surnames,
for exampleLes Bresson. The exception is for the name of the royal
family like Les Bourbons.Some words are always plural such
as vacances (vacation) andmathmatiques (mathematics).
It is not at all difficult to learn how to translate french words to plural
form once you learn your vocabulary and the rules and exceptions.

Forming Plural from Singular Adjectives

The plural of most adjectives is formed by adding s to the singular of the masculine or
feminine adjective, as shown in Table 1 (feminine form in parentheses).

An adjective modifying two or more nouns of different genders uses the masculine
plural: L'homme et sa femme sont gnreux. (The man and his wife are generous.)

Masculine singular adjectives that end in s or x

If a masculine singular adjective ends in s or x, the singular and plural are identical, as
shown in Table 2.

Masculine singular adjectives that end in al

For most masculine adjectives ending in al, change al to aux in the plural:

For most masculine adjectives ending in , change to in the plural:

Masculine irregular singular adjectives

Both masculine singular forms of beau (bel), nouveau (nouvel), and vieux (vieil) have one and the
same plural form. (Note that des becomes debefore the adjective). See the Masculine irregular
adjectives article for a better understanding of using bel, nouvel, and vieil.

Both masculine singular forms of , and have one and the same plural form. (Note that becomes
before the adjective). See the Masculine irregular adjectives article for a better understanding
of using , and .
The adjective tout (all) is irregular in the masculine plural:

Singular: tout
Plural: tous