This deep dive covers Féminins irréguliers — Irregular feminine forms within Adjective agreement and position for GCSE French. Revise Adjective agreement and position in Core Grammar Toolkit for GCSE French with 15 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 4 of 7 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
📋 Féminins irréguliers — Irregular feminine forms
A core group of high-frequency adjectives have unpredictable feminine forms. These appear constantly in AQA texts and must be known cold.
| Masculine sg | Feminine sg | Masculine pl | Feminine pl | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| beau (bel before vowel) | belle | beaux | belles | beautiful / handsome |
| nouveau (nouvel before vowel) | nouvelle | nouveaux | nouvelles | new |
| vieux (vieil before vowel) | vieille | vieux | vieilles | old |
| blanc | blanche | blancs | blanches | white |
| long | longue | longs | longues | long |
| doux | douce | doux | douces | soft / gentle |
| faux | fausse | faux | fausses | false / wrong |
| actif | active | actifs | actives | active |
| sportif | sportive | sportifs | sportives | sporty |
Mon vieux quartier a de belles maisons.
My old neighbourhood has beautiful houses.
- vieux agrees with quartier (masculine singular) — no change from base form.
- belles agrees with maisons (feminine plural) — irregular feminine belle + plural -s.
- Both adjectives go BEFORE their noun (BAGS category — age and beauty).
Practice questions for Adjective agreement and position
Which ending do you add to most adjectives to make them feminine?
Where do most French adjectives go relative to the noun?