Some families of nouns related through meaning are masculine.
Trees |
chêne (oak), cèdre (cedar), saule (willow), pin (pine), hêtre (beech), platane (sycamore).. ; The word arbre (tree) itself is masculine even though its etymon in Latin is feminine (arbŏr, ŏris f.) |
Chemical Elements |
mercure(mercury), souffre(sulfur), brome(bromine), iode(iodine)... ; |
Metals and Minerals |
bronze, cuivre (copper), platine (platinum), fer (iron), or (gold), diamant (diamond), zinc, plomb (lead)... ; |
Gaz |
chlore(chlorine), propane, oxygène(oxygen), carbone(carbon)...; |
Scientific Classifications |
Zoology: mammifères(mammals), reptiles, insectes(insects)...; Geology: sulfures(sulfides), oxydes(oxides), carbonates...; Botany: spermatophytes(seed plants), angiospermes(angiosperms) |
Numbers |
le 1, le 2, un 421, un 38 (size for shoes or clothes), sur son 31, au 13 bis, le 02 53 666 35 ... ; |
Letters |
le A, le B, le E..., le B.A.-BA, l’abc ; |
Notes | le do, le ré, le sol… ; |
Days | le lundi(Monday),..., le dimanche(Sunday); |
Month |
janvier(January), décembre(December), brumaire ; |
Seasons |
le printemps(sping), l’été(summer), l’automne(automne), l’hiver(winter) ;
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The following families can be added as well:
Cardinal directions |
le nord(north), le sud(south), l’ouest(west), l’est(east) (< English); le centre(center) ; |
Colors |
le jaune(yellow), le rouge(red), le mauve(purple), le rose(pink)...; (< converted adjectives) ; |
Languages |
le russe(russian), le français(french), l’arabe(arabic)...; (< converted adjectives) ;
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Some families are not totally masculine, but have a strong masculine trend.
Rocs |
marbre(marble), calcaire(limestone), schiste(shale), basalte(basalt), jaspe(rus), gypse(gypsum), silex(rus), grès(sandstone), sable(sand), granit(granite)... except derivatives in –ite f. (bauxite, lignite...) as well as popular terms like: ardoise(slate), argile(clay), craie(chalk), houille(coal), chaux(lime) ; |
Matters |
acier(steel), asphalte(asphalt), aluminium, bitume(asphalt), bois(wood), béton(concrete), caoutchouc(rubber), coke(coke), cuire(leather), ivoire(ivory), liège(cork), mortier(mortar), plastique(plastic), plâtre(plaster), polystyrène(polystyrene), textile(textiles), verre(glass), contre-plaqué(plated-cons) But ébène(ebony) and porcelaine(china) are feminine ; |
Geometric shapes |
carré(square), cône(cone), cylindre(cylinder), cercle(circle), losange(rhombus), trapèze(trapezoid) Learned compounds: rectangle, triangle, hexagone(hexagon), parallélogramme(parallelogram), parallélépipède(parallelepiped)… ; |
Measures |
ampère(ampere), are(are), grade(grade), gramme(gram), joule(joule), litre(liter), lux(lux), mètre(meter), watt(watt)... ; |
Textiles |
tulle, crêpe, jean, taffetas, velours, coton, nylon, feutre, satin, tweed… (But soie, serge… and derivatives like: flanelle, dentelle, mousseline, are feminine) ; |
NOTE 1
Names of sciences, arts and techniques are all feminine:
botanique, chimie, céramique, astrologie, grammaire, orthographe, medicine, musique...
NOTE 2
Some families have been generated through amalgam or ellipsis:
chiens (m.) dogs |
le caniche, le dalmatien, le saint Bernard… ; |
fromages (m.) sheeses |
le gruyère, le camembert, le chèvre… ; |
vins et spiritueux (m.) wines and alcohols |
le bourgogne, le champagne, le cognac… (except la vodka < Rusian) ; |
véhicules (m.) vehicles |
un quatre-quatre, un utilitaire… ; |
voitures et motos (f.) cars and bikes: |
une Peugeot, une DS, une 4L, une 4 portes, une cylindrée, une décapotable… ; |
Copyright © Ginette Guillard-Chamart 2009. All rights reserved.