French adjectives agree with the noun in gender and number — so 'small' has four forms: petit, petite, petits, petites. Most go after the noun, but a small set (BAGS: Beauty, Age, Good/bad, Size) go before.
Size and shape (go BEFORE the noun)
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| grand / grande | big, tall | Before noun: un grand homme. After noun changes meaning to 'great'. |
| petit / petite | small, little | Always before: une petite maison. |
| gros / grosse | fat, large | Before noun. Plural: gros / grosses. |
| long / longue | long | Before noun. Feminine drops to 'longue'. |
| court / courte | short | Before noun. |
Quality (go BEFORE the noun — the BAGS rule)
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| bon / bonne | good | Before noun: un bon livre. Double the n for feminine. |
| mauvais / mauvaise | bad | Before noun: un mauvais film. |
| beau / belle | beautiful, handsome | Irregular: beau, bel (before vowel), belle, beaux, belles. |
| joli / jolie | pretty | Before noun. Lighter than 'beau'. |
| jeune | young | Before noun. Same form for masculine and feminine. |
| vieux / vieille | old | Irregular: vieux, vieil (before vowel), vieille. |
| nouveau / nouvelle | new | Irregular: nouveau, nouvel, nouvelle, nouveaux. |
Colors (go AFTER the noun)
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| rouge | red | Same form M/F. Une voiture rouge. |
| bleu / bleue | blue | Add e for feminine. |
| vert / verte | green | Feminine adds e and pronounces the t. |
| noir / noire | black | Feminine pronounces a small extra sound. |
| blanc / blanche | white | Irregular feminine. |
Personality (go AFTER the noun)
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| gentil / gentille | kind, nice | Double l + e for feminine. |
| sympa | nice, friendly | Short for sympathique. Same form M/F. |
| intelligent / intelligente | smart | Feminine pronounces the final t. |
| drôle | funny | Same form M/F. |
| sérieux / sérieuse | serious | x → se for feminine. |
| timide | shy | Same form M/F. Ends in e already. |
States and feelings (go AFTER the noun)
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| content / contente | happy, pleased | Feminine pronounces the t. |
| fatigué / fatiguée | tired | Past participle used as adjective. Add e for feminine. |
| malade | sick | Same form M/F. |
| occupé / occupée | busy | Add e for feminine. |
| facile | easy | Same form M/F. |
| difficile | difficult | Same form M/F. |
More everyday adjectives (AFTER the noun)
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| chaud / chaude | hot, warm | |
| froid / froide | cold | |
| propre | clean (after) / own (before) | Position changes meaning: une chemise propre = a clean shirt; ma propre chemise = my own shirt. |
| sale | dirty | Same form M/F. |
| cher / chère | expensive (after) / dear (before) | |
| pas cher / pas chère | cheap, inexpensive | |
| lourd / lourde | heavy | |
| léger / légère | light (not heavy) | Accent flips for feminine. |
| plein / pleine | full | |
| vide | empty | Same form M/F. |
| ouvert / ouverte | open | |
| fermé / fermée | closed | |
| vrai / vraie | true, real | |
| faux / fausse | false, wrong | x → sse for feminine. |
| libre | free (available) | Une table libre = a free table. |
| prêt / prête | ready | |
| seul / seule | alone, only | |
Look and appearance (AFTER the noun)
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| mignon / mignonne | cute | |
| moche | ugly | Informal. Same form M/F. |
| laid / laide | ugly | Formal. |
| mince | thin, slim | Same form M/F. |
| fort / forte | strong | |
| faible | weak | Same form M/F. |
| haut / haute | high, tall (objects) | |
| bas / basse | low | |
| large | wide | False friend — NOT 'large' in English. |
| étroit / étroite | narrow | |
| rond / ronde | round | |
| carré / carrée | square | |
Feelings and mood (AFTER the noun)
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| heureux / heureuse | happy | |
| triste | sad | Same form M/F. |
| en colère | angry | Invariable expression. |
| fâché / fâchée | angry, upset | |
| calme | calm | Same form M/F. |
| nerveux / nerveuse | nervous, jumpy | |
| amoureux / amoureuse | in love | |
| jaloux / jalouse | jealous | |
| surpris / surprise | surprised | |
| déçu / déçue | disappointed | |
| fier / fière | proud | |
| ennuyeux / ennuyeuse | boring | |
| passionnant / passionnante | exciting, fascinating | |
Quality and judgment
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| génial / géniale | great, awesome | Plural masc: géniaux. |
| super | great | Invariable. Informal. |
| nul / nulle | useless, terrible | Informal. |
| parfait / parfaite | perfect | |
| important / importante | important | |
| intéressant / intéressante | interesting | |
| utile | useful | Same form M/F. |
| inutile | useless | |
| possible | possible | Same form M/F. |
| nécessaire | necessary | Same form M/F. |
Meaning-changers (position matters)
These adjectives change meaning depending on position. Learn both placements.
| French | English | Note |
|---|
| ancien | former (before) / ancient (after) | Mon ancien prof = my former teacher. Une église ancienne = an old church. |
| pauvre | unfortunate (before) / poor=no money (after) | |
| propre | own (before) / clean (after) | |
| cher | dear (before) / expensive (after) | |
| seul | only (before) / alone (after) | |
| dernier | last (before) / previous (after) | La dernière page = the last page. La semaine dernière = last week. |
| même | same (before) / very/itself (after) | |
Tips to memorize this list faster
- Default rule: French adjectives go AFTER the noun. Exceptions are short, common ones — remember BAGS (Beauty, Age, Goodness, Size).
- Feminine usually adds -e. If the adjective already ends in -e (jeune, rouge, facile), nothing changes.
- Plural usually adds -s. If it already ends in -s or -x (gros, vieux), nothing changes.
- A handful of adjectives change meaning depending on position. 'Un grand homme' = a great man. 'Un homme grand' = a tall man.
- Adjectives ending in -eux become -euse in the feminine (heureux → heureuse). Ones ending in -if become -ive (actif → active).
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