EXCEPTIONS. 1st EXCEPTION.-Nouns ending in s, x, or 2, in the singular, remain the same in the plural; as, The trees of their orchards.-The flowers of our gardens.arbre leurs verger fleur nos jardin The palaces of the kings. Buy me four pounds of walnuts. palais roi Achetez-moi quatre livre -The fashions of the French.—The crosses of the knights.— Français croix mode noix chevalier The laws of those countries.-The movements of the armies. loi ces pays mouvement The spoons and forks are on the table. cuiller et art. fourchette sont sur three sons and two daughters. trois fils deux fille f. armée 2d EXCEPTION.-Nouns ending in the singular in au, eu, œu, or ou, take an x instead of an s in the plural; as, matelot Owls are A fleet of twenty ships. The boats of the sailors.flotte f. vingt vaisseau bateau He (found himself) between two fires. se trouva entre hideous birds. IL pr. art. hideux 1oiseau beaucoup de deux feu art. hibou sont The knives are on the sideboard.sur buffet m. couteau pickpockets in London and Paris.— filou à Londres et à 3d EXCEPTION.-The greater number of nouns ending in al or ail in the singular, form their plural by changing the final al or ail into aux ; as, canal, hôpital, canal. travail, work. canaux, canals. The following nouns in al and ail take an s in the plural: attirail, apparatus, imple- éventail, fan. bal, ball. [ments. gouvernail, helm, rudder. carnaval, carnival. détail, particulars. Singular. portail, the gate of a church. régal, treat. THE FOLLOWING NOUNS ARE IRREGULAR. Heaven, Meaning. ciel skies in painting; the top of a bed; the sky under which a country lies, eye, Plural. cieux. }ciels yeux. (Small round or oval windows are called œils-de-bœuf.) paternal and maternal grandfathers, œil aïeul ail aïeuls. ancestors, those who preceded our grandfathers, aïeux. garlic, Bétail, subst. masc. sing., and Bestiaux, subst. masc. pl., are synonymous, both meaning cattle. The horses of the generals. The marshals of France.cheval The English admirals.-These corals are beautiful.-The balls 'anglais 1amiral Ces corail sont superbes. of the nobility. He sells bal fans. Our Saviour noblesse f. Il vend pr. art. éventail Notre Sauveur ascended into heaven in presence of his disciples.-Open monta à art. ciel pl. en présence de ses your Ouvrez eyes. She has the portraits of her two grandfathers. * art. oeil Elle a ses deux aïeul -His forefathers have filled high stations. ont rempli de grandes charges. aïeul CHAPTER III. OF THE ADJECTIVE. THE Adjective is a word which expresses a particular quality or distinction ascribed to a substantive. A word is known to be an adjective, when it can be properly joined with the word personne, person; or chose, thing. Thus, fidèle, faithful, and agréable, agreeable, are adjectives, because we can say, une personne fidèle, a faithful person; une chose agréable, an agreeable thing. In English, the adjectives never vary on account of gender and number, but in French they change their termination, in order to agree, in gender and number, with the substantives to which they relate. OF THE FORMATION OF THE FEMININE OF ADJECTIVES. GENERAL RULE. The feminine of adjectives is formed by adding an e mute to the masculine singular; as, 1st EXCEPTION.-Adjectives ending in e mute do not change their termination in the feminine; as, un homme aimable, an amiable man. un jeune garçon, a young boy. Their house une femme aimable, an amiable woman. une jeune fille, a young girl. EXERCISE VIII. is small, but it is well situated. Leur maison f. est petit mais elle est bien viande That street is narrow and dark. -The meat eau f. f. situé is cold; the froid not) ripe. Avoid (is chaud Cette poire f. n'est pas mûr Evitez bad company. (She is) a clever art. mauvais compagnie f. C'est habile woman. She femme. Elle scarf. The eldest sister 2aîné 1sœur 2rouge 1écharpe f. is prudent, well-informed, rich, and pretty. bien instruit riche joli 2d EXCEPTION.-Adjectives ending in ƒ change that letter into ve for the feminine; as, 3d EXCEPTION.-Adjectives ending in x change the x into se; as, Masc. Fem. heureux, heureuse, happy. jaloux, jalouse, jealous. Masc. Fem. paresseux, paresseuse, idle. vertueux, vertueuse, virtuous. The following in a form their feminine thus: Masc. Masc. Fem. Is she vieux, vieille, old. EXERCISE IX. attentive? Catherine de Médicis was ambitious, était ambitieux, imperious, and superstitious; she was a native of Florence.impérieux et superstitieux Joshua (brought down) the walls of the proud Jericho.→ orgueilleux Jéricho f. Italian language is sweet and harmonious. italienne langue f. doux That harmonieux Cette is false. The new tower is in the old town. nouvelle f. faux 2neuf tour f. dans vieux ville f. 4th EXCEPTION.-Adjectives ending in el, eil, ien, on, and et, form their feminine by doubling the last consonant, and adding an e mute after it; as Masc. Fem. Masc. Fem. cruel, cruelle, cruel. chrétien, chrétienne, Christian. pareil, pareille, similar. bon, bonne, good. ancien, ancienne, ancient. net, The soul is immortal.—I (am reading) ancient history. 2chrétien That poor âme f. est immortel Je lis art. 2ancien 'histoire f. hm. We are in the nineteenth century of the Christian Nous sommes dans dix-neuvième siècle m. era. She (is not) pretty, but she is good. 1ère f. Elle n'est pas joli mais est bon woman is dumb.-Are you ready, sister?-Your mother is femme muet Etes-vous prêt ma sœur? Votre mère very uneasy. That person is extremely indiscreet. très inquiet Cette pauvre personne f. extrêmement indiscret 5th EXCEPTION.-Adjectives ending in eur, formed from a participle present by the change of ant into eur, make euse in the feminine; as, connaissant, connaisseur, connaisseuse, knowing, a judge. flattant, flatteur, flatteuse, mentant, trompant, menteur, trompeur, menteuse, trompeuse, flattering, a flatterer. lying, a liar. deceiving, deceitful. OBSERVATION.-Words of this sort are real adjectives, but are for the most part used as substantives. About a hundred follow this rule. The following must be excepted, forming their feminine by the change of eur into eresse: |