Possessive & Demonstrative Adjectives

📌 Note de grammaire

Possessive adjectives agree in gender and number with the noun they modify, not with the owner. Use 'mon' for masculine singular nouns and 'ma' for feminine singular nouns. Use 'mes' for all plural nouns regardless of gender.

📌 Note de grammaire

Used to indicate possession for the informal singular pronoun 'tu'. 'Ton' is masculine singular, 'ta' is feminine singular, and 'tes' is plural for both genders.

📌 Note de grammaire

Agrees with the possessed noun, not the gender of the owner. 'Son' and 'sa' are singular; 'ses' is plural. 'Son' is used for a masculine noun and 'sa' for a feminine noun, whether the owner is a man or a woman.

📌 Note de grammaire

For ease of pronunciation (elision/liaison), feminine singular nouns starting with a vowel or silent 'h' take the masculine forms 'mon', 'ton', or 'son' instead of 'ma', 'ta', 'sa'.

📌 Note de grammaire

Does not change for masculine/feminine singular nouns ('notre'). Changes to 'nos' for all plural nouns. The circumflex accent on 'notre' and 'nos' helps distinguish them from other words, though it does not affect pronunciation.

📌 Note de grammaire

Used for formal addresses ('vous' to one person) or plural groups ('you all'). 'Votre' modifies any singular noun (masculine or feminine), while 'vos' modifies any plural noun.

📌 Note de grammaire

Does not change for masculine/feminine singular nouns ('leur'). Adds an 's' to become 'leurs' for plural nouns. The plural pronoun 'ils/elles' owns the item(s).

📌 Note de grammaire

Demonstrative adjectives point out specific nouns. 'Ce' is used exclusively before masculine singular nouns that begin with a consonant sound or a aspirated 'h'.

📌 Note de grammaire

The special masculine form 'cet' is used before masculine singular nouns starting with a vowel or a silent 'h'. This prevents clashing vowel sounds.

📌 Note de grammaire

Used before all feminine singular nouns, regardless of whether they begin with a consonant or a vowel. There is only one feminine singular demonstrative form ('cette').

📌 Note de grammaire

The plural demonstrative adjective for both masculine and feminine nouns. It sounds identical to 'ses' and 'c'est' in spoken French, so context is key.

📌 Note de grammaire

At A1, you primarily learn demonstrative adjectives ('ce/cette/ces'), but in conversation, speakers often add '-ci' (here/this) or '-là' (there/that) after the noun with a hyphen to emphasize distance.