CHAPTER I. Articles. There are three articles, viz. le, the, definite; un, a, indefinite; and du, some, partitive. They are declined in three states or cases, viz. nominative, genitive, and dative; as follows. The definite LE, the; thus, The indefinite article un, a, is thus declined. The partitive article Du, some, is thus declined. Masc. Fem. Common. 1. tdu, some tde la, some) de l', some 2. dc, of some de, of some d', of some 3. à du, to some à de la, to some, à de l', to some PLURAL. * Obs 1. The apostrophe is used instead of e before a masculine, and instead of a before a feminine noun. 2. Du is a contraction of de le; des of de les; au of à le; and aux of à les. De le, de les, à le, à les, must never be used before a noun. 3. Du, de la, &c. are sometimes Englished by from the; d'un and d'une by from a; de and d' by from some. 1 Obs. Du, de la, &c. are used to express a part of a whole, and des is used to express a part of a quantity of things. Ex. donnez-moi du pain, give me some bread; donnez moi de la viande, give me some meat; donnez-moi des pommes, give me some apples. CHAPTER II. Plural of Nouns. The plural of nouns is generally formed by adding s to the singular; as, So form the following examples, and observe that a masculine singular article must be put before a masculine singular noun, a feminine singular before a feminine singular, a plural before a plural, and I before a noun beginning with a vowel or h mute.. Roi, m. king; reine, f. queen; garçon, m. boy; maison, f. house; champ, m. field; main, f. hand; loi, f. law; hiver, m. (h mute), winter; église, f. church; historie, f. (h mute), history; cause, f. cause; prince, m. prince; cordon, m. string; larme, f. tear; jardin, m. garden; huitre, f. (h mute), oyster ; langue, f. language; harpe, f. (h aspirate), harp; lettre, f. letter; oncle, m. uncle; vertu, f. virtue; habit, m. (h mute), coat; ami, m. (male) friend; amie, f. (female) friend; cousin, m. (male) cousin; cousine, f. (female) cousin; étranger, m. foreigner; étrangère, f. foreigner; voisin, m. neighbour; voisine, f. neighbour. The general rule admits of the following exceptions. 1. Those nouns which end in s, z, and z, in the singular, remain the same in the plural; as, * Note. m. stands for masculine, and f. for feminine. Singular. le fils, m. the son Plural. les fils, the sons So; palais, m. palace; mois, m. month; brébis, f. sheep; prix, m. price; noix, f. nut; lynx, m. lynx; voix, f. voice; souris, f. mouse; nez, m. nose; héros, m. (h aspirate), hero. 2. Most nouns in au, eau, eu, œu, ieu, and ou,* form their plural by adding z; as, Singular. le feu, m. the fire Plural. les feux, the fires So; couteau, m. knife; chapeau, m. hat; berceau, m. cradle, tableau, m. picture; genou, m. knee; caillou, m. flint ; neveu, m. nephew; veau, m. calf; vœu, m. vow; chou, m. cabbage; lieu, m. place; vaisseau, m. vessel; manteau, m. cloak; hameau, m. (h aspirate), hamlet; pieu, m. stake; bijou, m. jewel; château, m. castle; jeu, m. game; joyau, m. jewel; peau, f. skin. 3. Most nouns, in al and ail, form their plural by changing 1, or il, into ux; as, Singular. le cristal, m. the crystal l'animal, m. the animal le corail, m. the coral Plural. les cristaux, the crystals So; mal, m. evil; général, m. general; travail, m. labor, or work; soupirail, m. air-hole; cheval, m. horse; bail, m. lease: arsenal, m. arsenal; maréchal, m. marshal; cardinal, m. cardinal; émail, m. enamel. * Obs. Some nouns in ou follow the general rule; as le clou, the nail; le trou, the hole; le verrou, the bolt; le hibou, the owl; le fou, the fool; le filou, the sharper; le matou, the male cat; le licou, the halter. Plural, les clous, the nails; les trous, &c. Also le bleu, the blue, takes s in the plural. But the following nouns in al and ail take s in the plural. Le carnaval, the carnival; le régal, the treat, le bal, the ball; le bocal, the jug; le cal. the hard skin; Juvénal, Juvenal, and other proper names in al; le mail, the mallet; l'évantail, the fan; le gouvernail, the rudder; le camail, the capuchin; l'attirail, the train; le sérail, the seraglio; le portail, the portal; le détail, the detail. Plural, les carnavals, the carnivals; les régals; les bals, &c. 4. Nouns, in nt form their plural by changing the t into s; but those of one syllable, in nt, follow the general rule; as, Singular. le moment, m. the moment l'enfant, m. the child le pont, m. the bridge la dent, f. the tooth Plural. les momens, the moments So; serpent, m. serpent; accent, m. accent; sentiment, m. sentiment; événement, m. event; mouvement, m. movement; parent, m. relation; gant, m. glove; vent, m. wind; accident, m. accident; cure-dent, m. tooth-picker; lieutenant, m. lieutenant. 5. Nouns, with the indefinite article in the singular, and partitive article in the plural; as, Singular. un verre, m. a glass Plural. des verres, glasses des plumes, pens or some pens des écoliers, scholars des écolières, scholars * Obs. This mode of spelling is adopted by the French Academy, as well as by most modern writers; vide the Dictionary of the French Academy, Revue Encyclopédique, &c. But some writers prefer retaining the t.- (Vide the French Grammars of Girard, Wailly, Restaut, &c.) † Obs. 1. When the feminine of an indefinite article or adjective is used, the final letter e is not taken away before a vowel; as, une église, a church; de bonne eau, good water. 2. The names of metals have no plural when taken in a general or collective sense; as, de l'or, gold; de l'argent, silver; du fer, iron; du plomb, lead; du cuivre, copper; but some have a plural when taken in a distributive sense, that is, when they denote different kinds of the same species of things; or, when used in work; then we may say des fers, des plombs, &c. - Wailly, p. 31. So; cuiller, f. a spoon; plat, m. dish; assiette, f. plate; couteau, m. knife; fourchette, f. fork; jardin, m. garden; cuisine, f. kitchen; cuisinier, m. male cook; cuisinière, f. female cook; chambre, f. room; gillet, m. waistcoat; dent, f tooth; ange, m. angel; fille f. daughter; parent, m. relation. enfant, m. or f. child; veau, m. calf. The following nouns are irregularly formed. Plural. Singular. P'œil,* m. the eye le ciel,* m. the heaven le bétail, m. the cattle l'aïeul, m. the ancestor ail, m. garlic les yeux, the eyes ON THE PLURAL OF COMPOUND NOUNS. When a word is compounded of two nouns, without a preposition between them, or of a noun and an adjective, both take the mark of the plural; as, Singular. un arc-boutant, m. a buttress Plural. des arcs-boutans, buttresses des havres-sacs, soldiers' knap- 3. The names of the virtues and vices have no plural; as, la foi, the faith; la prudence, prudence, &c. - Vide Restaut, p. 45. 4. The following nouns have no singular; ténèbres, f. darkness; pleurs, m. tears; matines, f. morning prayers; ciseaux, m. scissars; nones, f. nones; vêpres, f. vespers; ancêtres, m. ancestors; gens, m. or f. people, &c. * 5. Ciel and œil sometimes follow the general rule; as des ciels de lit, testers of a bed, les ciels de tableaux, the skies of pictures; des œils de bœuf (a term used in architecture), ovals. |