Jobs: feminine nouns | French | Quizalize & Oak National Academy

Starter quiz

Match the French words below to the correct English translation,
- être
  
  ⇔
  
  to be, being ✓
- je suis
  
  ⇔
  
  I am ✓
- tu es
  
  ⇔
  
  you are ✓
- il est
  
  ⇔
  
  he is ✓
- elle est
  
  ⇔
  
  she is ✓
Which is the best translation for 'je veux' ?
- I want ✓
- He wants
- I go
- He goes
Nouns in French are either masculine or ...
- 'feminine' ✓
Match the French words below to the correct English translations.
- devoir
  
  ⇔
  
  to have to ✓
- dormir
  
  ⇔
  
  to sleep, sleeping ✓
- vouloir
  
  ⇔
  
  to want (to) ✓
- factrice
  
  ⇔
  
  postwoman ✓
- directrice
  
  ⇔
  
  headteacher ✓
- avocate
  
  ⇔
  
  lawyer ✓
What is the word for the rise and fall of the voice when speaking?
- 'intonation' ✓
What letter do feminine adjectives often end in?
- 'e' ✓

Exit quiz

Which sound-symbol correspondences are contained in the word 'hélicoptère'?
- [ain]
- [h] ✓
- silent -e ✓
- [è/ê] ✓
- [on]
Match the French and English.
- devoir
  
  ⇔
  
  to have to ✓
- je dois
  
  ⇔
  
  I have to, must ✓
- il doit
  
  ⇔
  
  he has to, must ✓
- vouloir
  
  ⇔
  
  to want (to) ✓
- je veux
  
  ⇔
  
  I want (to) ✓
- il veut
  
  ⇔
  
  he wants (to) ✓
Who is the sentence about '__________ secrétaire travaille dans le bureau.'?
- man
- woman
- could be either ✓
Order the French for the sentence 'Léa wants to be a teacher but Sophie wants to be a headteacher.'
- 1
  
  ⇔
  
  Léa
- 2
  
  ⇔
  
  veut être
- 3
  
  ⇔
  
  professeure
- 4
  
  ⇔
  
  mais Sophie
- 5
  
  ⇔
  
  veut
- 6
  
  ⇔
  
  être
- 7
  
  ⇔
  
  directrice
Add the missing word. Person nouns ending in 'eur' usually change to ______ in the feminine form.
- 'rice' ✓
Add the missing word to the sentence 'The lawyer is careful'. L'______ est prudente.
- 'avocate' ✓

Worksheet

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Lesson Details

Key learning points

[h] is silent in French, as in the word 'heure'.
Most French person nouns for jobs become feminine by adding -e, e.g. une avocate.
Person nouns already ending in -e stay the same, but the article changes, e.g. le → la secrétaire.
Masculine person nouns ending in -eur typically change to -rice in the feminine form.
The rules around job nouns are still changing and there are exceptions to the rules.

Common misconception

Add an -e to all person nouns to make them feminine.

The most common way to make a person noun feminine is to add an -e to the masculine version. If nouns already end in -e, person nouns usually stay the same but the article changes. Jobs ending in 'eur' usually change to 'rice' in the feminine form.

Keywords

[h] - pronounced as in 'heure'
Person noun - a noun used for a person e.g. un professeur