In French, adjectives ending in -el/-eil/-il/-ul/-et/-s have a specific feminine form.
Learn how to make the feminine form of adjectives ending in -el/-eil/-il/-ul/-et/and some adjectives in -s in French
Look at these feminine adjectives:
Le journal télévisé n'est pas nul mais la télé-réalité est nulle.The news is not lame but reality TV is lame.
Note that adjectives ending in -el, -eil, -il, -ul, -en, -on, -et double the final consonant in the feminine form and then add -e.
In many but not all cases, the change can be heard in speech.
Case of adjectives ending in -s
While most adjectives in -s don't double the consonant in the feminine:
there are a few common exceptions to know:
- gras -> grasse (fatty,fat)
- gros -> grosse (big, fat)
- épais -> épaisse (thick)
- bas -> basse (low)
- las -> lasse (weary)*
- gros -> grosse (big, fat)
- épais -> épaisse (thick)
- bas -> basse (low)
- las -> lasse (weary)*
See also Forming the feminine of nouns and adjectives ending in "-ien/-ion/-on" in French
* antiquated
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Examples and resources
- Ici, le plafond est trop bas. - Et là, c'est la fenêtre qui est trop basse.- Here, the ceiling is too low. - And there, it's the window that's too low.
![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/KT_UfAKgOBo/hqdefault.jpg)
Mon pantalon est gris, et ma chemise est grise aussi.My trousers are grey, and my shirt is grey too.
- Ce résultat est mauvais. - Non, c'est la question qui est mauvaise.- This result is wrong. - No, it's the question that's wrong.
Le velours est épais, mais la soie n'est pas épaisse du tout.Velvet is quite thick, but silk isn't thick at all.