Position of Adjectives
3.7.1. The Main Idea
In French, most adjectives usually come after the noun.
un livre intéressant | an interesting book |
une leçon difficile | a difficult lesson |
un café calme | a calm café |
une ville moderne | a modern city |
This is different from English, where adjectives usually come before the noun.
3.7.2. Most Adjectives Go After the Noun
Most adjectives that describe colour, nationality, shape, style, religion, and many qualities come after the noun.
un sac noir | a black bag |
une chaise bleue | a blue chair |
un étudiant chinois | a Chinese student |
une étudiante canadienne | a Canadian student |
un café moderne | a modern café |
une leçon intéressante | an interesting lesson |
3.7.3. Common Adjectives Before the Noun
Some common short adjectives usually come before the noun.
un petit café | a small café |
une grande ville | a big city |
un bon cours | a good class |
une bonne leçon | a good lesson |
un beau livre | a beautiful book |
une belle maison | a beautiful house |
un nouveau cours | a new course |
une nouvelle leçon | a new lesson |
un vieux cahier | an old notebook |
une vieille table | an old table |
3.7.4. BAGS Adjectives
A helpful memory group is BAGS:
Beauty | beau / belle |
Age | jeune / vieux / vieille / nouveau / nouvelle |
Goodness | bon / bonne / mauvais / mauvaise |
Size | grand / grande / petit / petite |
Many BAGS adjectives usually come before the noun.
3.7.5. Adjectives After the Noun: Colours
Colour adjectives usually come after the noun.
un stylo bleu | a blue pen |
une règle verte | a green ruler |
un sac noir | a black bag |
une table blanche | a white table |
un cahier rouge | a red notebook |
une chaise jaune | a yellow chair |
3.7.6. Adjectives After the Noun: Nationalities
Nationality adjectives usually come after the noun.
un étudiant chinois | a Chinese student |
une étudiante chinoise | a Chinese student |
un professeur canadien | a Canadian professor |
une professeure canadienne | a Canadian professor |
un café français | a French café |
une université américaine | an American university |
3.7.7. Same Adjective, Different Position
Some adjectives can appear before or after the noun, but the meaning may change.
un ancien professeur | a former professor |
un professeur ancien | an ancient / very old professor |
un grand homme | a great man |
un homme grand | a tall man |
un pauvre étudiant | a pitiful / unfortunate student |
un étudiant pauvre | a poor student, not rich |
For now, focus on the beginner pattern: most adjectives after the noun, common BAGS adjectives before the noun.
3.7.8. Core Patterns
noun + adjective | most adjectives |
un livre intéressant | an interesting book |
une table noire | a black table |
noun + nationality | nationality adjectives |
un étudiant chinois | a Chinese student |
noun + colour | colour adjectives |
un stylo bleu | a blue pen |
short common adjective + noun | many BAGS adjectives |
un bon cours | a good class |
une petite maison | a small house |
3.7.9. Practice
an interesting book |
a difficult lesson |
a black bag |
a blue chair |
a Chinese student, masculine |
a Canadian student, feminine |
a small café |
a big city |
a good class |
a beautiful house |
3.7.10. Answers
an interesting book | un livre intéressant |
a difficult lesson | une leçon difficile |
a black bag | un sac noir |
a blue chair | une chaise bleue |
a Chinese student, masculine | un étudiant chinois |
a Canadian student, feminine | une étudiante canadienne |
a small café | un petit café |
a big city | une grande ville |
a good class | un bon cours |
a beautiful house | une belle maison |
3.7.11. Short Dialogue
A : C’est un bon cours ? | A: Is it a good class? |
B : Oui, c’est un bon cours. La leçon est intéressante. | B: Yes, it is a good class. The lesson is interesting. |
A : Et le livre ? | A: And the book? |
B : C’est un livre bleu et intéressant. | B: It is a blue and interesting book. |
3.7.12. Checkpoint
By the end of this lesson, you should be able to place most French adjectives after the noun, recognize common adjectives that usually come before the noun, place colour and nationality adjectives after the noun, and understand that adjective position can sometimes change meaning.
3.7.13. Try It Out
Try saying this in French:
It is an interesting book.
It is a good class.
Possible answer:
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