Nouns — AQA GCSE French
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Nouns explained
In French, every noun has a gender (masculine or feminine) and a number (singular or plural).
Read the full explanation
Understanding and applying these forms is fundamental. Masculine singular nouns often use articles like 'le' or 'un' (e.g., le livre), while feminine singular nouns use 'la' or 'une' (e.g., la table). To form the plural, you typically add an '-s' to the singular noun, which is usually silent (e.g., les livres, les tables). However, there are important exceptions: nouns ending in '-s', '-x', or '-z' do not change in the plural (e.g., un choix becomes des choix), and nouns ending in '-eau' or '-eu' take an '-x' (e.g., un bateau becomes des bateaux). Nouns ending in '-al' often change to '-aux' (e.g., un cheval becomes des chevaux).
Your focus
- Classify French nouns as masculine or feminine, singular or plural.
- Construct the regular plural form of French nouns by adding '-s'.
- Apply irregular plural rules to nouns ending in '-eau', '-eu', '-al', '-s', '-x', and '-z'.
Nouns exam tips
Marking Points
- Identifies the correct definite or indefinite article to match the gender of a singular noun.
- Applies the standard rule of adding '-s' to form the plural of regular nouns.
- Correctly forms the plural of nouns ending in '-eau', '-eu', or '-al' using the appropriate irregular endings.
- Recognises that nouns already ending in '-s', '-x', or '-z' in the singular remain unchanged in the plural.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Always learn a new noun with its definite or indefinite article (e.g., learn 'une maison', not just 'maison') to memorise its gender.
- 💡Pay close attention to the articles ('le', 'la', 'les', 'un', 'une', 'des') in reading and listening tasks, as they are the primary indicators of gender and number.
- 💡Memorise the common irregular plural endings ('-eau' to '-eaux', '-al' to '-aux') as these are frequently tested.
Common Mistakes
- Assuming a noun's gender based on its English equivalent or physical characteristics. (Correction: Learn the gender of each French noun along with its spelling, as grammatical gender is often arbitrary.)
- Pronouncing the plural '-s' at the end of nouns. (Correction: Remember that the plural '-s' is generally silent in French; the plural is indicated by the article, e.g., 'les'.)
- Adding an '-s' to nouns that already end in '-s', '-x', or '-z' in the singular. (Correction: Leave these nouns unchanged in the plural, e.g., 'un nez' becomes 'des nez'.)