Demonstrative Adjectives (Ce, cet, cette, ces) in French
The words 'this, that, these, those' are demonstrative adjectives in english. In french, demonstrative adjectives are "ce, cet, cette, ces". In french they must agree in gender and number with the noun they modify.
Ce, cet, cette and ces mean 'this' and 'these' in english. You need to know how to use 'Ce, cet, cette, ces' in a sentence. The table below gives information about the use of demonstrative adjective in french :
| Singular | Plural | |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | Ce/Cet | Ces |
| Feminine | Cette | Ces |
There are two points that we conclude based on the table above, they are :
- The singular demonstrative adjectives ce, cet, cette can all mean this or that, depending on the context.
- Ce is used before a masculine singular noun
- Ce becomes Cet before a noun beginning with a, e, i, o, u and a silent h
- Cette is used before a feminine singular noun
- The plural demonstrative adjective ces can mean these or those, depending on the context
Examples of demonstrative adjectives :'Ce'
- Ce garçon est intelligent (This boy is smart)
- Ce garçon là-bas est mon enfant (That boy over there is my child)
- Ce travail est pénible (This work is painful)
Examples of demonstrative adjectives :'Cette'
- Cette nouvelle semaine on va aller au cinéma (this new week we will go to the cinema)
- Cette jupe est faite pour vous (This skirt is made for you)
- Cette maison-là est la mienne (That house over there is mine)
Examples of demonstrative adjectives :'Cet'
- Cet homme est mon professeur (This man is my teacher)
- Cet arbre est grand (This tree is big)
- Cet archipel est situé à environ 2000 km du Malawi (This archipelago is located about 2000 km from Malawi)
Examples of demonstrative adjectives :'Ces'
- Ces deux pantalons sont à moi (These two trousers are mine)
- Ces fruits sont particulièrement sucrés (These fruits are particularly sweet)
- Ces chocolats sont délicieux (These chocolates are delicious)
