Verb drill

French plurals exercise: change one object into two

Turn singular requests into plurals: un croissant → deux croissants, le journal → les journaux, l'œil → les yeux. Typed answers with accents checked.

In short

Most French plurals add a silent -s: un livre → des livres. Articles change too: le/la/l' → les, un/une → des. Nouns in -al usually become -aux (un journal → des journaux), -eau adds -x (un gâteau → des gâteaux), and -s, -x, -z don't change.

Yellow the idea to rememberBlue French to learnRed watch out

Two golden croissants on a white plate beside two cups on a French café table.
Deux croissants changes the request from one to two. Illustration: Atelier
Study first
SingularPluralRule
un livredes livresadd -s
le paysles pays-s stays
un canaldes canaux-al → -aux
un bateaudes bateaux-eau → -eaux
un cheveudes cheveux-eu → -eux
un monsieurdes messieursirregular

1 · Change one into two

  1. Je voudrais un croissant. → Je voudrais deux . (add -s)
  2. Il y a un animal. → Il y a deux . (-al)
  3. J'ai acheté un gâteau. → J'ai acheté deux . (-eau)
  4. Je prends le bus. → Je prends les deux . (ends in -s)
  5. Tu as un jeu ? → Tu as deux ? (-eu)
  6. Elle a un cheval. → Elle a deux . (-al)
  7. Un nez rouge. → Deux rouges. (ends in -z)
  8. Je lis un journal. → Je lis deux . (-al)
  9. Un bijou en or. → Deux en or. (-ou exception)
  10. Un œil bleu. → Deux bleus. (irregular)

2 · Article and noun

  1. le prix → (article + noun)
  2. la fenêtre → (article + noun)
  3. l'hôpital → (article + noun)
  4. un chapeau → (article + noun)

Can you hear a French plural?

Because the final -s is silent, you usually hear the plural in the article: le livre vs les livres, un livre vs des livres. Before a vowel, the liaison gives it away too: les‿enfants ("lé-zan-fan"). In -al/-aux words, you hear the change in the noun itself.

A few -ou nouns take -x: bijou, caillou, chou, genou, hibou, joujou, pou. Everything else in -ou just adds -s: des trous, des clous. Un festival and un bal are exceptions to -al → -aux: des festivals, des bals.

Adjectives follow the same rules as nouns and agree in the plural: un livre intéressant → des livres intéressants, un beau jardin → de beaux jardins. Notice the last example: in careful written French, des becomes de before a plural adjective placed in front of the noun.

Question 1No account needed
Plural of un festival

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

des festivals. Festival is one of the exceptions: des festivals.

Question 2No account needed
Plural of le genou

Choose one answer.

Answer and explanation

les genoux. Genou is one of the seven -ou nouns with -x.