French Compound Nouns - Plurals - Les noms composés au pluriel
< Continued from page 1
French compound nouns are made up of two or more words often connected by hyphens. Making them plural can be a little tricky, but there are some guidelines that can help.
When making compound nouns plural, two rules generally apply:
Please note that these are just guidelines and that there are exceptions. (Le Bon Usage has an excellent in-depth discussion of compound noun plurals.)
French compound nouns are made up of two or more words often connected by hyphens. Making them plural can be a little tricky, but there are some guidelines that can help.
When making compound nouns plural, two rules generally apply:
- Nouns, adjectives, and past participles become plural
- Verbs, prepositions, and adverbs are invariable
Please note that these are just guidelines and that there are exceptions. (Le Bon Usage has an excellent in-depth discussion of compound noun plurals.)
| Noun + noun | ||
| Â Â Â | The two nouns are equal | Both are plural |
| un oiseau-mouche | des oiseaux-mouches | |
| un chou-fleur | des choux-fleurs | |
| Â Â | ||
| One noun modifies the other (often with a preposition) | Modifier is invariable | |
| un aide de camp | des aides de camp | |
| un arc-en-ciel | des arcs-en-ciel | |
| un chef-d'Å“uvre | des chefs-d'oeuvre | |
| un soutien-gorge | des soutiens-gorge | |
| Â Â | ||
| Noun + adjective | Both are plural | |
| un coffre-fort | des coffres-forts | |
| un pied plat | des pieds plats | |
| Â Â | ||
| Adjective + noun | Both are plural | |
| un grand-père | des grands-pères | |
| une belle-fille | des belles-filles | |
| Â Â | ||
| Adjective + adjective | Both are plural | |
| une douce-amère | des douces-amères | |
| un sourd-muet | des sourds-muets | |
| Â Â | ||
| Adverb + noun | Adverb is invariable | |
| une arrière-cour | des arrière-cours | |
| un haut-parleur | des haut-parleurs | |
| Â Â | ||
| Adverb + past participle | Adverb is invariable | |
| un nouveau-né | des nouveau-nés | |
| un bien-aimé | des bien-aimés | |
| Â Â | ||
| Preposition + noun | Preposition is invariable | |
| une contre-offensive | des contre-offensives | |
| un en-tête | des en-têtes | |
| un après-midi | des après-midis | |
| Â Â | ||
| Verb + noun | ||
| Concrete/countable noun | Verb is invariable | |
| un brise-glace (ice breaker) | des brise-glaces | |
| un couvre-lit | des couvre-lits | |
| Â Â | ||
| Abstract/collective noun | Invariable | |
| un porte-monnaie | des porte-monnaie | |
| un gratte-ciel | des gratte-ciel | |
| Â Â | ||
| Verb + verb | Invariable | |
| un laissez-passer | des laissez-passer | |
| un va-et-vient | des va-et-vient | |
| Â More: Gender of compound nouns | ||