French articles

le, la, l’, lesun, une, des

le, la, l’, les (definite articles)

• What do these words mean?

• These words all mean the.

• So how do you know which one to use?????

• Well, first of all, if the noun is plural, there is only one possibility:

• les• For example, to say the teachers you

would say:• les professeurs.

• If your noun is singular (that means you’re talking about only one thing), then you have to choose from le, la, l’ .

• Your choice of definite article depends on the gender of the noun that follows.

• In French, every noun has a gender—it is either masculine or feminine.

• In order to choose between le or la, you have to know the gender of the noun.

• For example, the noun boisson (drink) is feminine.

• If you want to say the drink you would say:

• la boisson.

• Since casse-croûte (snack bar) is masculine, how would you say the snack bar?

• le casse-croûte

• Fantastique!

Reminder about plurals…• But what if the noun is plural? For

example, frites (fries). How would I say the fries?

• les frites

• (You can see that if a noun is plural, you don’t really need to know if it’s masculine or feminine in order to choose the correct article.)

• So when do we use l’ ?

• See if you can figure out the rule:• l’oignon (m) = the onion• l’agrafeuse (f) = the stapler• l’école (f) = the school• What do these words have in

common?

• That’s right!! They all start with a vowel AND they are singular.

• Sooooo, l’ is used to mean the in front of a masculine or feminine noun starting with a vowel.

Révision• 1. _____ livre (m) = the book• 2. _____ prix (m) = the price• 3. _____ coupe glacée (f) = the ice cream

sundae• 4. _____boissons (f) = the drinks• 5. _____oignons (m) = the onions• 6. _____ ordinateur (m) = the computer

lelela

lesles

l’

Vous êtes très intelligents!

• So let’s move on to indefinite articles…

Indefinite articles• un, une & des are indefinite articles.(They don’t refer to any specific item—

any one will do.)

• Do you know what they mean?• un livre = a book• une portion = a serving• des frites = some fries

un, une, des• Which one is used in front of a

masculine singular noun?• un

• Which one is used in front of a feminine singular noun?

• une

• So now I bet you can guess when to use des (some).

• That’s right! In front of a plural noun—either masculine or feminine!

How are your matching skills?

• 1. a piece• 2. the fries• 3. the piece• 4. an ice cream

sundae• 5. the order• 6. an order• 7. some desserts• 8. the desserts

• a) une commande

• b) les desserts• c) un morceau• d) la commande• e) le morceau• f) une coupe

glacée• g) des desserts• h) les frites

vocabulaireles articles

• le• la• l’• les• un• une• des

• the (m.sing.)• the (f.sing.)• the (m/f +

voyelle)• the (m/f pl.)• a/an (m.sing.)• a/an (f.sing.)• some (m/f pl.)

Notes (grammar section)Les articles

• Les articles définis: Definite articles.• They refer to something definite.• le - (m. sing.)• la - (f. sing.)• l’ - (m/f + vowel)• les - (m/f pl.)

THE

• Ex. _______poulet•

_______pomme•

_______oignon• _______frites•

_______oignons

• the chicken• the apple• the onion• the fries• the onions

le

les

la

l’

les

• Les articles indefinis: indefinite articles• They refer to something unspecific.

(Anyone will do.)• un - (m. sing)• une - (f. sing)• des - (m/f pl.)

A, AN, SOME

• Our next lesson will cover the partitive articles du, de la, and de l’

Notes (grammaire section)les articles partitifs

• Les articles partitifs: Partitive articles.• They are used when referring to only part

of a given substance.• du - (m. sing.)• de la - (f. sing.)• de l’ - (m/f + vowel)• des - (m/f pl.)

SOME

ANY

• Ex. _______poulet•

_______pomme•

_______oignon• _______frites•

_______oignons

• some chicken• some apple• some onion• some fries• some onions

du

des

de la

de l’

des

• Ex. I am eating some chicken.• Je mange du poulet.• (I am only eating a part of the chicken—

not the whole thing.)

ATTENTION!• In a negative sentence:

• du • de la de / d’• de l’• des• Ex. J’aime de la moutarde dans mon hot dog.• Je n’aime pas de moutarde dans mon hot dog.• Elle mange des oignons.• Elle ne mange pas d’oignons.

becomes

• While we’re at it….

• un de/d’• une (becomes)

in negative sentences.Ex. J’ai un frère. I have a brother.Je n’ai pas de frère. I don’t have a brother.

A pratiquer:• 1. I like (some)* mustard in my hot dog.• 2. We are eating (some) bread.• 3. We aren’t eating (any) bread.• 4. I don’t eat (any) onions.• 5. She eats (some)onions.• 6. They share (some) fries.• 7. They are sharing an ice-cream sundae.• 8. I am not sharing an ice-cream sundae. • *Note: In English, we don’t always say “some”

or “any”, but in French we always use the article before the noun.