Indefinite French
Indefinite Adjectives - Adjectifs indéfinis (Autre, Certain, Chaque)
French indefinite adjectives, sometimes called affirmative indefinite adjectives, are used to modify nouns in an unspecific sense. Learn all about French indefinite adjectives like autre, certain, chaque, divers, and tout.
Indefinite Adverbs (Ailleurs, Parfois, Peu...)
One of the hardest things to translate into French is indefiniteness. French indefinite adverbs, or at least the French equivalents for English indefinite adverbs, are interesting and very useful.
Indefinite Articles (Un, Une, Des)
French indefinite articles correspond to a, an, one, or some in English. The indefinite article usually refers to an unspecified person or thing.
Indefinite Negative Adjectives (Ne... aucun, nul, pas un)
French negative adjectives, sometimes called indefinite negative adjectives, are made up of two parts which surround the verb. Negative adjectives negate, refuse, or cast doubt on a quality of the noun they modify.
Indefinite Negative Pronouns (Ne... personne, rien)
French negative pronouns, sometimes called indefinite negative pronouns, are used to negate, refuse, or cast doubt on the existence of the noun that they replace.
Indefinite Pronouns (Autre, Certain, Plusieurs...)
Indefinite pronouns are unspecific and are used in place of nouns. They can be the subject of a sentence, the object of a verb, or the object of a preposition.
Indefinite Relative Pronouns (Ce que, Ce qui, Ce dont, Quoi)
Indefinite relative pronouns link relative clauses to main clauses but have no antecedent. Ce que, ce qui, ce dont, and quoi are the French indefinite relative pronouns, and there's no one-to-one equivalent for these words - depending on context, the English translation may be what or which.
Passive Infinitive
Even though the French infinitive translates as "to + verb," the French sometimes needs to be preceded by a preposition. This is the case with the passive infinitive, which is commonly used with indefinite and negative words.
Tests on French indefinites
Define your knowledge of French indefinites.
Bidule
An informal word for "thingie, contraption."
Et patati et patata
Learn about the French expression et patati et patata.
Machin
Very common word: thingie, whatsit, contraption.
Même
The French word même can be an indefinite adjective, indefinite pronoun, or adverb, and is also used in a number of expressions, making it an extremely versatile and useful French word.
N'importe... - Indefinite Expressions
The indefinite expression n'importe can be followed by an interrogative in order to designate an unspecified person, thing, or characteristic: n'importe qui, n'importe quel, n'importe où.... Learn these expressions and more with this lesson.
On - Indefinite Subject Pronoun
On is the indefinite French subject pronoun, used mainly in colloquial French. Learn to use it here and discover the grammatical debate surrounding it.
Quelque
Quelque is an indefinite adjective and adverb that is found in numerous indefinite terms and expressions.
Quiconque
Quiconque is a formal French word, found mainly in formal registers such as law and other administrative jargons. It can be an indefinite relative pronoun or an indefinite pronoun.
Soi - Indefinite Stressed Pronoun
Soi should be used only for unspecified persons. Need more info? See the lesson!
Tartempion
Average Joe, a nobody
Tel Telle Tels Telles
The French word tel can be a qualifying adjective, an indefinite adjective, or an indefinite pronoun, and is also used in a number of expressions and conjunctions, making it an extremely versatile and useful French word.
Telautre
Some other guy
Tout
Learn all about the indefinite French adjective/adverb/pronoun tout.
Truc
Donne-moi le truc, là.
Trucmuche
Thingamajig, thingie, whatsit
Untel
John Doe, Mr. so-and-so