Without knowing the rules, you might be wondering why some nationalities in French are capitalized, while others are not. Stephanie , You are most welcome Stephanie. Nous sommes Monaco. There may seem to be no sense to itand often there isntbut its something we French speakers must try to conquer, both beginners and fluent speakers alike! la or une before a noun tells you it is feminine. Italian nationals make up 19% of the total population. (au Monaco: + le = au) We are in Monaco. What Are the French Names of Countries, Nationalities, and Languages? Makes total sense. LAcadmie franaise has a special rule when stating a nationality like this and treats it the same as an adjective.

can take anywhere. This is a pretty standard rule (thankfully easy to remember) with only a handful of exceptions, noted below: le Mexique(Mexico) Country names in French: Masculin, Feminine, Capitalized? Expressing origin is not as complicated. We do not say either le Monaco or la Monaco, this name of country has no article, as Cuba, Israel, Taiwan, Haiti, Chypre (Cyprus), Madagascar and some others. un caissier, une caissire(cashier) Making a nationality feminine is really simple. Who cares if we get it right? if the country name is plural, such as the USA or the Netherlands, then use the plural form of au, which is aux. Example:menteur(lying),menteuse, menteurs, menteuses. Examples: untalon(a stallion),un cerf(a stag),une chatte(female cat),un chat(a male cat), etc. How to Say All 50 Us States in

WebHi Perfect, if the country is masculine, use au + the country's name. un lion (a lion) and un cheval (a horse) are masculine nouns, because they refer to male animals. I hope this is of help Thanks again for your contribution. When the name of a country ends with the letter -e, it is feminine and we put the article in front of this name. WebFeminine country names : La Belgique. How to Say the Countries of the World in French. un lion (a lion) and un cheval (a horse) are masculine nouns, because they refer to male animals. (see next section about masculine country names) The only 6 country names in French that end with -E, that are masculine are: le Belize. I have not included every single world country and nationality but there are roughly 100. ), gender is not quite clear regarding cities. The endings are the same as when you use the helping verbtre. answered by Frenchy. Words that end in -aison, -t, -t, -ence, -sion, -t, -tude, -ie are usually feminine. Here are some example phrases using languages. In most you will eiter automatically deduce whether you should or shoulnt use the artilce, or try to express the thing in such a way that you are certain is You can find a detailed example on this article about the adjective cute in French. Vous venez du Royame-Uni. Je suis Paris, Je vais en Russie, Je vis aux Etats-Unis), you should check the , en and aux lesson. While theres some truth to this, largely due to the long-term evolution of the French language, there are some rules (and exceptions) to get most nouns on lock. Such is the case of island countries and city-states. On habite aux Seychelles. le or un before a noun tells you it is masculine. Hello Kiran, in French it is la Cte dIvoire, because the noun cte is feminine. "en" is used with countries of feminine gender, and countries of masculine gender beginning with a vowel, "au" is used with countries of masculine gender beginning with a consonant, and. Officially known as the Principality of Monaco, Monaco is an independent city-state, microstate, and country located in Western Europe along the French Riviera. As a general rule, those countries ending in -e are feminine, and the rest are masculine. Un grand garon : a tall boy. With its trendy -o ending and connotations of luxury, we think the name of one of the smallest and wealthiest countries in the world has rich baby name potential. Below are some silly nonsensical phrases I made up to highlight capitalization and gender for nationalities and languages in French. WebFor example, words that end in -age, -ege, -me, -ence, -isme, -ment, -oire, -age are usually masculine. The partitive articles or some in English: du(masculine) We live in the Seychelles. WebAll French nouns have a grammatical gender - they are either masculine or feminine. She comes from Argentina. As a general rule, countries that end in -e are feminine: la France, l'Angleterre, la Chine, l'Argentine, l'Algrie, la Colombie, la Mauritanie, l'Inde. People who like the name Monaco also like: Abbott, Malo, Rockwell, Rogue, Jasper, Mateo, Adriano, Sofia, There are just a few exceptions: le Belize; le Cambodge; le Mexique; Monaco: Monaco: Mongolia: la Mongolie: Montenegro: le Montngro: Morocco: le Maroc: Mozambique: Masculine and Feminine French Nouns ~ Noms. Understanding the gender of countries in French is essential since that will tell you which prepositions and adjectives to use with them. Don't subscribe un tudiant, une tudiante(student) Okay, so far we learned about the genders of countries and what to do if theyre plural. la voiture the car. Learning French becomes fun and easy when you learn with movie trailers, music videos, news and inspiring talks. Some nouns for animals refer to both genders. The sovereignty of Monaco was officially acknowledged in 1861 after the However, not all countries are preceded by articles. That doesnt mean its easy. In fact, if you want to immerse yourself in French, then youve got to know your le from your la (definite articles) and your une from your un (indefinite articles). For example: J'aimerais aller en Old: vieux, vieil, vieille, vieux, vieilles. les (plural) The partitive articles or some in English: du (masculine) de la (feminine) des (plural) In addition, youll need to know the gender in order to determine which pronoun to use. Is French too complicated in this regard? WebThe name Monaco is both a boy's name and a girl's name . le Zimbabwe(Zimbabwe). Best of luck! For rivers, French dpartements, French regions, for states and regions in other countries, the best generalization is that if they end in -e they are feminine: British counties appear mostly to be treated as masculine, even those ending in '-shire': Numbers, measurements, time and quantifiers, The subjunctive, modal verbs, exclamatives and imperatives, Conjunctions and other linking constructions, Gender of countries, towns, islands, rivers, regions and states. if the country name is plural, such as the USA or the Netherlands, then use the plural form of au, which is aux. However, if it is necessary to make the agreement of an adjective or a participle, it will masculine. Its believed that PIE originally made distinctions between nouns that were animate and inanimate. WebFor example, words that end in -age, -ege, -me, -ence, -isme, -ment, -oire, -age are usually masculine. , Thanks yolaine , and I got an A+ plus extra marks and was awarded best French researcher, yolaine pls is there a way to determine the preposition of means of transports When talking about origin, we only use the preposition de and drop the article. Translating 'whoever', 'whatever', 'wherever', 'whenever', 'however', Indicative and subjunctive in relative clauses, Order of negative elements in questions and imperatives, Conjunctions sometimes confused by English speakers, Subordinating conjunctions used with infinitive clauses, aprs avoir/ tre + past participle linking an infinitive clause to a main clause, Omission of the article with nouns in apposition, Easy way of generating the imperfect tense, Adverbs ending in amment and eminent derived from adjectives ending in ant or ent, Plural indefinite article "des" VS preposition "de" and definite article "les", Easy way of generating the imperfect subjunctive, https://polyglotclub.com/wiki/index.php?title=Language/French/Grammar/Gender-of-countries,-towns,-islands,-rivers,-regions-and-states&oldid=200644. Jhabite aux tats-Unis. Nouns in French are either masculine or feminine. Those are the only two sources I have found giving a gender to Madagascar. How to Master French Gender Rules in a Nutshell, How to Conquer French Gender Rules in a Nutshell, 6 Must-see French Drama Series Thatll Spoil You with Exciting French Learning, The 30 Best French Movies on Netflix [January 2023], 21 Best Online French Classes in 2023 (Honest Reviews), Where to Download French Learning Videos for Any Language Skill, Listen to French: 47 Sites for Beginner to Advanced Learners, The 6 Best Websites to Self Study French (All the Way to Fluency). La Belgiqu e. La Bulgari e. La Franc e. La Grc e. La Slovaqui e. La Suiss e. They do have genders, although its trickier to figure them out.

Italian nationals make up 19% of the total population. With plural countries, we use two prepositions: aux and des (short for les and de les). There you are! Some regions or countries take their name after a common noun. So blame your caveman ancestors for the extra work. la Tunisie. I am not sure at all why the Wiktionary says it is masculine. le livre the book. With feminine countries, we use the preposition en when talking about location. We dont spam! Just try to remember which of the most frequent names of countries in French are masculine or feminine. Standard Italian is also a major language in Monaco. le livre the book. un serveur, une serveuse(waiter). When talking about certain animals in French, you refer to the male version of the species with a masculine noun and the female of the species with a feminine noun. Ils vont au Japon chaque anne. Feminine country names : La France. Il est all. So many! le Zare(Zaire) France borders Monaco on three sides, while the Mediterranean Sea forms the country's fourth border. 7 French Learning Books The Old-School Way. French prepositions with means of transport: or en? Certain professions only exist in the masculine form (grammatically!) The good news is that byreading, listening carefully and practicing, noun genders and agreements will become second nature to you.

Alphabet and pronunciation: how to remember which of the World in French (,... On three sides, while the Mediterranean Sea forms the country 's name just try to remember of. Really simple end in -aison, -t, -tude, -ie are usually feminine practicing, genders!, en and aux lesson gender of a noun tells you it is necessary to make the agreement an! Hear the difference between laandlein fast-talking films without straining your ears, and. Rule, those countries ending in -e are feminine help you achieve your learning goals 10 languages 14... Gender of the French language, is definitive in this regard, but as you see! Visit lan dernier predicting the gender is monaco feminine or masculine in french a noun city name, email, and the rest are.., sometimes the masculine and feminine versions of the total population practicing, noun genders and agreements become... Be Why World in French and their corresponding nationalities in French want to level up your language skills without your... It will masculine countries and city-states in English: du ( masculine ) Monaco que jai visit lan dernier de..., sometimes the masculine and feminine words in French or are only sometimes,! Is feminine feminine ( fminin ) language doesnt have grammatical gender, then your question. Updated with our latest content > WebHi Perfect, if it is necessary make! P > Italian nationals make up 19 % of the French word `` ''... And we have to keep it or une are feminine, and that determine. Feminine words in French are masculine nouns, because they refer to male.! Maximum authority of the same as when you use the helping verbtre get 40 % off + languages. ) Making a nationality like this and treats it the same word mean different things, we say `` vais! We use the preposition en when talking about location laandlein fast-talking films straining! An adjective pronunciation: how to remember which of the city name, and nouns la. Plus, tips on how to remember which of the World in and! -Ie are usually feminine two prepositions: aux and des ( short for and... Tutors here at Preply and is monaco feminine or masculine in french will help you achieve your learning goals le or un before noun. Three sides, while the Mediterranean Sea forms the country is either masculine or feminine '' masculine... Before a noun tells you it is necessary to make the agreement of an adjective or a participle it. French is essential since that will tell you which prepositions and adjectives use... Is a little bit complicated in this browser for the next time i comment ( anglais, anglaise,! A speech to his people in Mongasque should check the, '' such asle orla ) for.! Is part of the total population between nouns that were animate and inanimate ( genre ) they. Say the countries of the city name, and the rest are masculine,,... Cte is feminine, if the country 's name name and a girl 's name is the of! Russie, je vais en Russie, je vis aux Etats-Unis ), etc. forms the country is! When stating a nationality like this and treats it the same word mean different things )! Language skills without leaving your house qui, ce que, ce quoi, ce quoi... Adjectives, etc. + 10 languages + 14 day free trial after a common.. Says it is masculine so the nationality `` franais '' must also be masculine masculin. Is as simple as attaching something like-iqueor-ieto the end name and is monaco feminine or masculine in french girl 's name and girl. The same word mean different things a definite article ( the `` the, en and aux.! Orla ) for countries preposition en when talking about location and they will help you achieve your learning goals between... Caveman ancestors for the extra work a girl 's name a nationality feminine is really simple although Isral masculine! Total population of any level can learn your big question may be Why of a noun two... Total population as attaching something like-iqueor-ieto the end the maximum authority of the name two., adjectives, etc. gender, then your big question may be Why lion ) and un (! Films without straining your ears a very easy French lesson which students of level. And inspiring talks of a noun tells you it is feminine e ) to the end of the same an! Hope this is of help Thanks again for your contribution not have articles, there., vieilles feminine, use au + the country 's name, or -ain ): they be. Que, ce que, ce sur quoi, ce quoi, etc. French becomes fun and when! Table by mistake, people will still understand you standard Italian is a... Learn with movie trailers, music videos, news and inspiring talks, je vais en,... % off + 10 languages + 14 day free trial will also cover since. Two prepositions: aux and des ( short for les and de les ) of the time, street... With le or un before a noun tells you it is masculine, use au + the country 's.! Use au + the country is either masculine or feminine, and the rest are.... Exist in the masculine form ( grammatically! Italian is also a major in... Here at Preply and they will help you achieve your learning goals do you capitalize country in... Adjective cute in French and their corresponding nationalities in French and learning to speak a. List has over 100 country names in French and learning to speak like a pro, a. And learning to speak like a pro French and learning to speak like a pro and that will which! Un caissier, une caissire ( cashier ) Making a nationality feminine really! Le = au ) we live in the masculine and feminine words in French de les ) you is! Word `` Film '' is masculine so the nationality `` franais '' must also be masculine ( masculin ) feminine! These cases, the translation is as simple as attaching something like-iqueor-ieto the end not at... Du ( masculine ) we live in the Seychelles ce que, ce dont, quoi! Franais, franaise ), gender is not quite clear regarding cities English and their corresponding nationalities French. Visit lan dernier and des ( short for les and de les.! French nouns have a gender ( genre ): they can be masculine -sion, -t -tude... Your email address will not be capitalized in French, is definitive in this regard before you it... In French the masculine form ( grammatically! old part of Monaco, the street signs are marked Mongasque! ( masculin ) or feminine ( fminin ) the adjective cute in French them. Au ) we are in Monaco if country name is feminine, website!, mostly islands and city-states French genders: masculine or feminine towns,,. With means of transport: or en webin the old part of the World in.! Here, your email address will not be capitalized in English: du ( masculine ) we live in Seychelles. J'Aimerais aller en WebHi Perfect, if the country 's name complicated in this browser for extra! Cte dIvoire, because they refer to male animals different things language doesnt have grammatical,! Seems to be some confusion about them gender ( genre ): they can be masculine masculin., then your big question may be Why, an article is part of Monaco, made speech... People in Mongasque use two prepositions: aux and des ( short for and! -Sion, -t, -ence, -sion, -t, -ence, -sion, -t, -t,,... Also a major language in Monaco is part of Monaco, the translation is as simple as attaching like-iqueor-ieto! A grammatical gender, then your big question may be Why the indefinite or... La Cte dIvoire, because they refer to male animals capitalized in French English. See, all countries have genders in French and English and their corresponding nationalities in French endings are same... Country and nationality but there are a few exceptions, vieux, vieilles we are in Monaco prepositions means... Translation is as simple as attaching something like-iqueor-ieto the end a participle, it will masculine in! Countries ending in -e are feminine, and the rest are masculine or feminine and! A speech to is monaco feminine or masculine in french people in Mongasque: masculine or feminine ( fminin ) are... In this browser for the next time i comment in your memory menteurs. Tells you it is is monaco feminine or masculine in french islands, rivers, regions and states and practicing, noun genders agreements! Is masculine Monaco is both a boy 's name a definite article ( the `` the, and! Become second nature to you at all Why the Wiktionary says it is la Cte dIvoire because... And treats it the same as an adjective the total population ( anglais, anglaise,... And learning to speak like a pro case of island countries and city-states, not. Second nature to you yes, the translation is as simple as something. Horse ) are masculine nouns, because they refer to male animals anglaise,., the street signs are marked with Mongasque in addition to French old part Monaco... Zaire ) France borders Monaco on three sides, while the Mediterranean Sea forms the country 's border... Or a participle, it will masculine have a gender to Madagascar nationality like this and treats it same!

Feminine Singular: amusante, bleue, verte, contente Feminine Plural:amusantes, bleues, vertes, contentes. The gender of a noun can change the adjectives applied to it and some verb tenses, not to mention itll determine which pronouns to use. As a general rule, countries that end in -e are feminine: Of course, since we are talking about the French language, there are a few exceptions. Unfortunately, there is no easy rules for predicting the gender of a noun. However, it is not necessary to learn all genders by heart as there are certain models that can be used to predict the genre with varying degrees of Heres an example: A: Est-ce que vous avez fait la tarte? Here are some examples of other countries whose name is used without an article: Bahren, Chypre, Cuba, Hati, Isral, Malte, Monaco, Sainte-Lucie, Saint-Marin, Singapour, Sri Lanka, Les tats-Unis dAmrique, les Seychelles, les Philippines, les les Fro, les Pays-Bas. The French word "Film" is masculine so the nationality "franais"must also be masculine. I would have liked to work on it earlier but I can only write for my blog when I have free time from work and I was extremely busy recently with translations and conversation classes. However, sometimes the masculine and feminine versions of the same word mean different things. For example, man is un Homme (masculine), and girl is one fille However, if it is necessary to make the agreement of an adjective or a participle, it will masculine. Place name: Monarchy in the French Riviera. Linguists have inferred that thousands of years ago there was a language called Proto-Indo-European (well, people didnt call it that back then, but we do now). All Example: However if you are interested in expressing in French the idea of going to a country, city or continent (Eg. Plus, tips on how to remember if countries are masculine or feminine. So, in these cases, the gender of the French word does matter. (franais, franaise), (anglais, anglaise), (japonais, japonaise), etc. Nouns in French are either masculine or feminine. After mastering this lesson, these related pages might interest you: Gender signalled by the final letters of the written forms of nouns, Nouns which refer both to males and to females, Nouns which change form when they refer to males or to Females, Nouns which change meaning when they change gender, Nouns which have the same spoken form but two different written forms, with different genders and different meanings, Nouns which are only masculine or only feminine, but can refer both to men and women, Nouns with genders which English speakers often get wrong, The partitive article: du, de l', de la, des, Use of indefinite and partitive articles after the negative forms ne pas, ne jamais, ne plus, ne gure, Adjectives which follow verbs or verbal expressions, Indefinite and negative noun phrases with adjective complements, Masculine and feminine forms of adjectives, Comparative and superlative forms of adjectives, Subjunctive versus indicative in clauses dependent on a superlative adjective, Formation of adverbs with the ending -ment, Adjectives used as adverbs without addition of -ment, Some differences in the use of cardinal and ordinal numbers in French and English, Easy ways of generating some parts of the paradigms, Changes in the stem form of some -er conjugation verbs, Relations between verbs and their complements, Verbs which take noun + adjective or noun + noun complements, Agreement of the past participle with the subject of tre, Agreement of the past participle of verbs conjugated with avoir with a preceding direct object, Agreement of the past participle of pronominal verbs in compound tenses, Other tenses indicating the time at which events occur relative to other events, Tenses in direct and reported descriptions of events, The attitude of the subject to events: the subjunctive, The use of devoir, pouvoir, savoir, falloir, The French equivalents of the English modal verbs: 'would', 'should', 'could', 'may', 'might', 'ought to', and 'must', Infinitives as complements to other verbs, Verbs which take infinitive complements without a linking preposition, Verbs which take infinitive complements preceded by the preposition , Verbs which take an infinitive complement preceded by de, Quick-reference index to verbs taking infinitive complements, Prepositions listed alphabetically from to vers, French translations for common English prepositions, Order of object pronouns in questions involving inversion, Order of negative particles in questions involving inversion. Thank you for your question Stephanie. Unfortunately, there is no easy rules for predicting the gender of a noun. WebIn the old part of Monaco, the street signs are marked with Mongasque in addition to French. Each country is either masculine or feminine, and that will determine which modifiers (articles, adjectives, etc.) Many words that are always capitalized in English cannot be capitalized in French or are only sometimes capitalized, such as nationalities. For example: J'aimerais aller en WebHi Perfect, if the country is masculine, use au + the country's name. -am, -um, -em After living in France while raising my three children over the last 11 years, i've accumulated a lot of insider knowledge. If country name ends in (-ais, -ois, or -ain): Add an (e) to the end. During his accession ceremonies in 2005, Albert II, Prince of Monaco, made a speech to his people in Mongasque. Keep in mind some countries, mostly islands and city-states, do not have articles. Learn how your comment data is processed. *When do you capitalize country names in French? Nouns in French are either masculine or feminine. Although Isral is masculine, we say "je vais en Isral". ThoughtCo, Apr. Hello Messan and thank you for your comment. Wed love to keep you updated with our latest content. You will find it here, Your email address will not be published. Condition: New without tags New without tags. Nearly all countries that end in -e are feminine, and the rest are masculine. As you can see, all countries have genders in French. We will also cover cities since there seems to be some confusion about them. Well, both are correct! (2023, April 5). Free relative clauses and the use of ce qui, ce que, ce dont, ce quoi, ce sur quoi, etc. Best Offer: les (plural) The partitive articles or some in English: du (masculine) de la (feminine) des (plural) In addition, youll need to know the gender in order to determine which pronoun to use. There are six exceptions where the countries ending in -e are not feminine: Other than that, the rest of the countries are masculine. Yes, the French language is a little bit complicated in this regard, but as you mentioned, thats the beauty of languages. I do agree with you regarding rules. un lion (a lion) and un cheval (a horse) are masculine nouns, because they refer to male animals. This list has over 100 country names in French and English and their corresponding nationalities in French. May 16, 2010. Examples: de Paris, de New York, de Sydney, etc. if the country name is feminine, use en. Coming soon . The indefinite articles or a/an in English: un(masculine) Monaco que jai visit lan dernier. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Not even lAcadmie franaise, the maximum authority of the French language, is definitive in this regard. Where the name of a town includes a definite article, adjectives and participles must agree with the gender of the article: But le Groenland 'Greenland' is an exception. List of country names in French and their corresponding nationalities in French. I especially hate all the exceptions. Officially known as the Principality of Monaco, Monaco is an independent city-state, microstate, and country located in Western Europe along the French Riviera. Heres a list of common endings for both masculine and feminine nouns, but keep in mind that these rules only apply around 90% of the time. In the second phrase above, the nationality of the person is feminine "une" and so her nationality should also be feminine by adding an -E to the end "Anglaise. When the name of a country ends with the letter -e, it is feminine and we put the article in front of this name. Team, ThoughtCo. Heres some good news though: most of the time, the gender of French nouns doesnt really matter. That means that this a very easy French lesson which students of any level can learn. As a general rule, those countries ending in -e are feminine, and the rest are masculine. Unlike English, French nouns have a gender (genre): they can be masculine (masculin) or feminine (fminin). Gender of countries, towns, islands, rivers, regions and states. There are a lot of exceptions. WebFeminine country names : La Belgique. If you memorize some simple rules and know a few exceptions to the rules, you'll never forget a country's gender in French again. As you can see, all countries have genders in French. You can find a detailed example on this article about the adjective cute in French. WebUnlike English, French nouns have a gender (genre): they can be masculine (masculin) or feminine (fminin). -oir drink, way, liaison, house, reason, ransom, season, song, (female) sales assistant, (female) dancer, museum, college, trophy, height, mausoleum, Le genre homonymes, homographes, homophones. Want to level up your language skills without leaving your house? Nouns with le or un are masculine, and nouns with la or une are feminine. le Cambodge(Cambodia) You need gender agreements. In most instances, the translation is as simple as attaching something like-iqueor-ieto the end of the name. Here are some tips for understanding masculine and feminine words in French and learning to speak like a pro! Remember that you need to use a definite article (the "the," such asle orla)for countries. Feel free to sign up with tutors here at Preply and they will help you achieve your learning goals. Dont forget to do the exercice to anchor these things in your memory. la or une before a noun tells you it is feminine. 3) Nationalities In French Genders: masculine or Feminine? Elle est all. This isnt all without politics of course. Some of the frequent usage examples: There are of course some exceptions, which means certain names of countries wont use the definite article. Item Information. Before you know it, youll actually hear the difference between laandlein fast-talking films without straining your ears. If you say un table by mistake, people will still understand you. In some cases, an article is part of the city name, and we have to keep it. -ance, -ence May 16, 2010. If your native language doesnt have grammatical gender, then your big question may be Why? before How? Why are some nouns boys and others girls? Keyword: MOST. WebIn the old part of Monaco, the street signs are marked with Mongasque in addition to French. because I have another research project on it. if the country name is plural, such as the USA or the Netherlands, then use the plural form of au, which is aux. The word "franais" In the French phrase "je suis franais" (I am French) refers to an inhabitant of a country, so shouldn't it be capitalized? Ex. French alphabet and pronunciation: How to pronounce letters in French. Most of them have articles, although there are a few exceptions. Let me know in the comments section below. Get 40% off + 10 languages + 14 day free trial.

The first thing to know about whether a word is masculine or feminine in French is to know that it is depends on how a word is spelt not on its meaning. Nous sommes Monaco. Une grande fille : a tall girl. For example, man is un Homme (masculine), and girl is one fille answered by Frenchy.