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Grammar
Objective: Predict noun gender with high accuracy by analysing the final syllables of unfamiliar words.
| Suffix | Examples | English |
|---|---|---|
| -tion | la nation, la formation | the nation, the training |
| -sion | la décision, la télévision | the decision, the television |
| -té | la liberté, l'université | freedom, the university |
| -ette | la baguette, la chaussette | the baguette, the sock |
| -ance | la chance, la confiance | luck, the confidence |
| -ence | la patience, la différence | patience, the difference |
| Suffix | Examples | English |
|---|---|---|
| -ment | le gouvernement, le mouvement | the government, the movement |
Nouns ending in -age are almost always masculine, including fromage, voyage, and message.
Nouns ending in -té are feminine, so liberté, université, and société all take la.
Both nouns end in -ion, which is a feminine signal. The adjective françaises agrees in the feminine plural.
Gouvernement ends in -ment and is masculine. Décision ends in -sion and is feminine. Both patterns hold in one sentence.
Université ends in -té and formations in -tion. Both suffixes signal feminine.
Stage ends in -age and is masculine. Entreprise ends in -ise and is feminine.
Plage is one of the feminine exceptions to the -age pattern. The adjective fermée is marked feminine to match.
5 exercises · about 8 minutes
| -age |
| le voyage, le fromage |
| the trip, the cheese |
| -eau | le bureau, le château | the desk, the castle |
| -isme | le tourisme, le réalisme | tourism, realism |
| -ier | le métier, le cahier | the job, the notebook |
| -oir | le miroir, le devoir | the mirror, the duty |
Nouns ending in -ment are masculine, covering gouvernement, mouvement, and document.
Not every -age noun is masculine, since plage, page, and image are feminine exceptions.
Voyage ends in -age and follows the masculine pattern. Only plage, page, and image are common exceptions.
Liberté ends in -té and is feminine. Courage ends in -age and is masculine. The possessive adjectives sa and son reflect both genders.
Musée ends in -ée, which usually signals feminine, but is one of the exceptions. Collection follows the -tion pattern and is feminine.