An -e ending doesn't mean "feminine": le problème (problem), le musée (museum), le lycée (high school), le silence, le groupe, le modèle are masculine. And la main (hand), la fin (end), la mer (sea), la nuit (night), la souris (mouse) are feminine.
Some words change meaning with their gender:
| masculine | feminine |
|---|---|
| le tour (tour, walk) | la tour (tower) |
| le livre (book) | la livre (pound: 500 g; currency) |
| le poste (job, position; TV set) | la poste (post office) |
| le mode (way, mode) | la mode (fashion) |
Feminine of nouns for people: un ami → une amie (friend), un acteur → une actrice (actor / actress), un vendeur → une vendeuse (salesman / saleswoman), un Italien → une Italienne, un infirmier → une infirmière (nurse).
Special plurals:
| rule | examples | exceptions |
|---|---|---|
| -al → -aux | un journal → des journaux (newspapers) | des bals (balls, dances), des festivals, des carnavals |
| -eau, -au, -eu → -x | un bateau → des bateaux (boats), un jeu → des jeux (games) | des pneus (tyres), des bleus (bruises) |
| -ail → -ails | des détails (details) | un travail → des travaux (works, roadworks), un vitrail → des vitraux (stained-glass windows) |
| -ou → -ous | des trous (holes) | bijou, caillou, chou, genou, hibou, joujou, pou → -oux (jewel, pebble, cabbage, knee, owl, toy, louse) |
| irregular | un œil → des yeux (eye / eyes), monsieur → messieurs, madame → mesdames |
Family names take no -s: les Dupont (the Duponts). Les gens (people) is always plural.
Translate the words from your reading, review them as flashcards and practise with gap-fill sentences.
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