French articles le, la, l’, les un, 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’heure (f) = the hour 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 le 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 le le la les les 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? 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

vocabulaire les articles 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 le the chicken the apple the onion the fries the onions la l’ les les

A, AN, SOME 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 du some chicken some apple some onion some fries some onions de la de l’ des 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. become s

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.