Plural Adjectives in French
An adjective is a word that is used to describe a noun.
French adjectives agree in gender and in number with the nouns they describe. In des voitures noires (black cars), noires (black)—which is the feminine plural form of noir (black)—is used because voitures (cars) is feminine and plural. In this article, you'll learn how to form plural adjectives in French!
Questions This Article Answers
How do I use adjectives in French?
How do you form plural adjectives in French?
Do adjectives come before or after the noun in French?
Adjective Placement in French
In French, adjectives are typically used after the noun. Let's take a look at some examples in the table below.
Examples of French Adjective Placement
| French | English |
|---|---|
| la voiture noire | the black car |
| un aéroport vide | an empty airport |
| des films américains | American movies |
Learn which adjectives come before the noun in French in this article:
Adjective Agreement in French
In French, adjectives must agree with the nouns they describe in gender and number. This means that if the noun an adjective describes is feminine, the adjective must be feminine as well. If that same noun is also plural, the adjective will be feminine AND plural!
For example, les étudiantes(the [female] students) is feminine and plural, so any adjective used to describe it must also be feminine and plural. You can see a few examples in the table below!
French Adjective Agreement
| French | English |
|---|---|
| les étudiantes anglaises | the English students |
| les étudiantes intelligentes | the intelligent students |
| les étudiantes heureuses | the happy students |
Rules for Plural Agreement in French
Just like with gender agreement, there’s also a rule for plural agreement that works for the vast majority of French adjectives. Meet your friend: "The Main Rule"!
Rule 1. The Main Rule: Add an -S
Most French adjectives simply take an -s in the plural. To make an adjective plural, add an -s to the masculine or feminine form. Check out how in the table below!
French Plural Adjectives That End in -S
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Rule 2. When -EAU Becomes -EAUX
If an adjective ends with -eau, add an -x (instead of an -s) to make it plural. Let's take a look at a few examples.
French Plural Adjectives That End in -EAUX
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Rule 3. When -AL Becomes -AUX
Most adjectives that end with -al in the singular will change to -aux in the plural. Check the table below for a few examples!
French Plural Adjectives That End in -AUX
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Rule 4. Don't Change Anything
If the adjective you want to pluralize ends with either an -s or an -x in the singular form, don't change anything at all! The singular form and the plural form are identical, as you can see below.
French Adjectives That End in -S or -X
Two Important Notes about Plural Adjectives
1. Gender Must Be Applied Before Number
The plural rules above apply to the specific form of the adjective you're looking at. For example, Rule 4 applies to the masculine français but not to the feminine française since the feminine does not end with an -s. Rule 3 applies to the masculine génial but not to the feminine géniale since the feminine does not end with -al. In other words, gender always applies before number. Let's take a look at a few examples.
Examples of Gender and Number in French Adjectives
2. Invariable Color Adjectives in French
If the name of the color comes from the thing that is known for this color, then the adjective is invariable. It never changes!
French Color Adjectives
| Plural | English |
|---|---|
| des gants orange | orange gloves |
| des chaussettes marron | brown (literally: chestnut) socks |
| des yeux noisette | hazel (literally: hazelnut) eyes |
| des draps saumon | salmon sheets |
Learn all about adjectives in French with these articles!
