French Nouns with Two Genders
Noms avec deux genres
List | Quiz
The gender of nouns tends to be a sticky grammar point for French students, especially when it does not exist in their mother tongue. Although getting the gender right is very important, most of the time the wrong gender will not hinder your ability to understand or to communicate in French, because most words have a single gender.*
However, there are a number of French nouns which are identical in pronunciation (and often spelling as well) but which have different meanings depending on whether they are masculine or feminine. Probably a good idea to memorize this list. :-)
| Masculine | Feminine | |||
| un aide | male assistant | une aide | help, assistance, female assistant | |
| un air | air, look, aria | une aire | area, zone, eyrie | |
| un auteur | author | une hauteur | height | |
| le bal | dance | la balle | ball (sports) | |
| le bar | bar/pub, bass (fish) | la barre | bar/rod, barre, helm | |
| le barbe | barb | la barbe les barbes |
beard ragged edge |
|
| le barde | bard (poet) | la barde | bard (armor for a horse, fat wrapped around meat) | |
| le basilic | basil, basilisk | la basilique | basilica | |
| le basque | Basque language | la basque | tails (of a jacket) | |
| le boum | bang, explosion, (fam) success | la boum | (inf) party | |
| le bout | tip, end | la boue | mud | |
| le bugle | bugle | la bugle | bugleweed | |
| le but | aim, goal, purpose | la butte | hillock, mound | |
| le cache | card/mask (for hiding s.t.) | la cache | cache, hiding place | |
| le capital | capital, money | la capitale | capital city, capital letter | |
| le carpe | carpus | la carpe | carp | |
| le cartouche | (archeology) cartouche | la cartouche | cartridge, carton | |
| le casse | break-in, robbery | la casse | breaking, damage, breakages | |
| le cave | (familiar) idiot, sucker | la cave | basement, cellar | |
| le central | center court, |
la centrale | station, plant, group | |
| le champagne | champagne | la Champagne | Champagne region | |
| le chêne | oak tree/wood | la chaîne | chain, channel, stereo | |
| le chèvre | goat cheese | la chèvre | goat | |
| le chine | china, rice paper | la chine la Chine |
second-hand / used trade China |
|
| le chose | thingie, contraption | la chose | thing | |
| le coche | stagecoach | la coche | check mark, tick (on a form) | |
| le col | collar, neck | la colle | glue | |
| le coq | rooster | la coque | hull, fuselage, cockle | |
| le cours le court |
class (tennis) court |
la cour | courtyard, court of law | |
| le crème | coffee with cream | la crème | cream | |
| le crêpe | crepe material | la crêpe | thin pancake | |
| le cric | jack | la crique | creek, inlet | |
| le critique | male critic | la critique | criticism, review, female critic | |
| le diesel | diesel fuel | la diesel | diesel automobile | |
| un enseigne | ensign (rank) | une enseigne | sign ensign (flag, banner) |
|
| un espace | space, room | une espace une Espace |
printing space car model from Renault |
|
| le fait le faîte |
fact summit, rooftop |
la fête | party | |
| le faune | faun | la faune | fauna | |
| le fil | thread, yarn, string | la file | line, queue | |
| le finale | finale (music) | la finale | final (sports) | |
| le foie | liver | la foi une fois |
faith once, one time |
|
| le foudre | (ironic) leader, large cask | la foudre | lightning | |
| le garde | guard, warden, keeper | la garde | guard duty, custody, private nurse | |
| le gène | gene | la gêne | trouble, bother, embarrassment | |
| le geste | gesture | la geste | gest, epic poem | |
| le gîte | shelter, cottage bottom round (meat) |
la gîte | list, inclination of a ship | |
| le greffe | court clerk's office | la greffe | transplant, graft | |
| le guide | guide (book, tour) | la guide les guides |
girl scout/guide reins |
|
| un interligne | space (typography) | une interligne | lead (typography) | |
| le jars | gander | la jarre | jar | |
| le lac | lake | la laque | lacquer, shellac, hairspray | |
| le légume | vegetable | la légume | (informal) la grosse légume - big shot | |
| le lieu | place | la lieue | league | |
| le livre | book | la livre | pound (money & weight) | |
| le maire | mayor | la mer la mère |
sea mother |
|
| le mal le mâle |
evil male |
la malle | trunk | |
| le manche | handle | la manche la Manche |
sleeve English Channel |
|
| le manœuvre | laborer | la manœuvre | maneuver, operation | |
| le manque | lack, shortage, fault | à la manque | (familiar) crummy, second-rate | |
| le mari | husband | la mari | marijuana (apocope of la marijuana) | |
| Marie | feminine name | |||
| le martyr le martyre |
male martyr martyrdom, agony |
la martyre | female martyr | |
| le mémoire | memo, report, memoirs | la mémoire | memory | |
| le merci | thanks | la merci | mercy | |
| le mi | mi (musical note E) | la mie | soft part of bread | |
| le mi-temps | (work) part-time | la mi-temps | (sports) half, half-time | |
| le mode | method, way, mood | la mode | fashion | |
| le moral | morale | la morale | moral (of a story), morals | |
| le mort | dead body | la mort | death | |
| le mou | softness | la moue | pout | |
| le moule | mold | la moule | mussel | |
| le mousse | ship's boy (apprentice) | la mousse | moss, froth, foam, mousse | |
| le mur | wall | la mûre | blackberry | |
| un œuvre | body of work | une œuvre | piece of work, task | |
| un ombre | grayling (fish) | une ombre | shade, shadow | |
| orange | orange (color) | une orange | orange (fruit) | |
| le page | page boy | la page | page (of a book) | |
| le pair le père |
peer father |
la paire | pair | |
| Pâques (m) | Easter | la pâque les Pâques |
Passover Easter |
|
| le parallèle | parallel (figurative) | la parallèle | parallel line | |
| le pendule | pendulum | la pendule | clock | |
| personne | (negative pronoun) no one | la personne | person | |
| le pet | (familiar) fart | la paie la paix |
pay peace |
|
| le physique | physique, face | la physique | physics | |
| le plastique | plastic | la plastique | modeling arts, body shape | |
| le platine | platinum | la platine | turntable, deck, strip of metal | |
| le poêle | stove | la poêle | frying pan | |
| le poids le pois |
weight pea, dot |
la poix | pitch, tar | |
| le politique | politician | la politique | politics, policy | |
| le ponte | (informal) big shot | la ponte | laying eggs, clutch of eggs | |
| le poste | job, post, tv/radio set | la poste | post office, mail/post | |
| le pot | jar, pot, tin, can | la peau | skin | |
| le pub | pub/bar | la pub | ad (apocope of publicité) | |
| le pupille | male ward | la pupille | pupil (eye), female ward | |
| le radio | radio operator | la radio | radio, X ray | |
| le rai | spoke (wheel) | la raie | line, furrow, scratch (fish) skate, ray |
|
| le relâche | rest, respite, break** | la relâche | rest, respite, break**, port of call | |
| le renne | reindeer | la reine la rêne |
queen rein |
|
| le rose | pink (color) | la rose | rose (flower) | |
| le roux | red, redhead, roux (soup base) | la roue | wheel | |
| le secrétaire | male secretary writing desk, secretary |
la secrétaire | female secretary | |
| le sel | salt | la selle | saddle | |
| le soi | self, id | la soie | silk | |
| le sol | ground, floor, soil | la sole | sole (fish) | |
| le solde | balance (account), sale | la solde | pay | |
| le somme | snooze, nap | la somme | sum, amount | |
| le souris | smile (archaic) | la souris | mouse | |
| le tic | tic, twitch | la tique | tick | |
| le tour | tour, turn, trick | la tour | tower, rook (chess) | |
| le tout | whole | la toux | cough | |
| le trompette | trumpeter | la trompette | trumpet | |
| le vague | vagueness | la vague | wave | |
| le vapeur | steamer | la vapeur | steam, haze, vapor | |
| le vase | vase | la vase | silt, mud | |
| le vigile | night watchman | la vigile | vigil | |
| le visa | visa (to enter a country) | la visa | Visa (credit card) | |
| le voile | veil | la voile | sail | |
**For these meanings, relâche can be masculine or feminine.
*For example, un bureau (desk) is masculine and une chaise (chair) is feminine. Saying une bureau or un chaise is incorrect, but still understandable. Other words have two different forms for masculine and feminine versions (un avocat/une avocate, un acteur/une actrice) or a single form that refers to a man or a woman depending on which article is used (un touriste/une touriste, un artiste/une artiste).
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