Describing things (2) - irregular adjective agreements

While virtually all adjectives end in –e in the feminine and –s in the plural , some adjectives will change in other ways as well. These are called irregular adjectives.

Adjectives ending in –f often end in –ve in the feminine :

Il est sportif   →   Elle est sportive

He's sporty, She's sporty

Adjectives ending in –x often end in –se in the feminine :

Il est paresseux   →   Elle est paresseuse

He's lazy, She's lazy

Adjectives ending in -n or –l often double their final consonant in the feminine :

Mon ami est italien   →   Mon amie est italienne

My friend is Italian, My friend is Italian

Mon frère est gentil   →   Ma soeur est gentille

My brother is kind, My sister is kind

Adjectives ending in –er often add a grave accent in the feminine :

Un pullover cher   →   Une jupe chère

An expensive jumper, an expensive dress

Other irregular adjectives to note are:

Un vieux film   →   une vieille histoire

An old film – An old story

Un beau jour   →   Une belle actrice

A beautiful day – A beautiful actress

Un mur blanc   →   une maison blanche

A white wall - A white house