Difference between revisions of "Language/French/Grammar/Number-differences-between-French-and-English-nouns"
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{{French-Grammar-Course-Menu}} | {{French-Grammar-Course-Menu}} |
Revision as of 23:47, 27 November 2021
French Grammar - Number differences between French and English nouns
Some nouns in the singular in English are in the plural in French and vice versa.
Here are some examples:
English singular & French plural
English singular | French plural |
---|---|
applause | les applaudissements |
darkness | les ténèbres |
sb's funeral | les funérailles de qn |
hair | les cheveux |
information | des informations, des renseignements |
knowledge | les connaissances |
to make progress | faire des progrès |
to do research/my research | faire des recherches/mes recherches |
English plural & French singular
English plural | French singular |
---|---|
linguistics | la linguistique |
economics | l'économie |
grapes (grape = un grain de raisin) | du raisin |
physics | la physique |
pyjamas | un pyjama |
stairs | l'escalier |
shorts | un short |
trousers | un pantalon |
tights | un collant |
underpants | un slip |
Mass nouns
A mass noun is a noun (like advice, bread, knowledge, luck, and work) that names things which, when used in English, generally cannot be counted. Many abstract nouns are uncountable, but not all uncountable nouns are abstract. The contrasting term is known as a count noun.
Some mass nouns in French can also be used as count nouns more freely than their English equivalents:
French | English |
---|---|
un pain | a loaf of bread (NOT *a bread) |
un fruit | a piece of fruit |
un raisin | a type of grape |