Key points about describing yourself and others in French
Use A word used to describe an action or state of being. 锚迟谤别 and avoir to describe what a person looks like and their personality.
An adjective is a word that describes a noun. In French, adjectives have different endings depending on whether the noun they are describing is masculine, feminine, singular or plural. endings change depending on the All French nouns are either masculine or feminine. In French, objects such as a table or car, as well as people, have a grammatical gender. and number of the The name of a thing such as an object, a place or a person. Nouns are often described as naming words. they are describing.
Some adjectival endings are An irregular verb does not follow a set pattern..
This guide contains a video as well as reading and listening practice.
Video - Describing myself and others
Watch the video of Rachel describing herself and her family, as well as talking to other people about themselves.
Rachel and others describe themselves using adjectives and present tense verbs
Salut! Je suis Rachel ! Je suis graphiste et j鈥檋abite 脿 Bruxelles en Belgique.
Ma famille me d茅crirait comme d茅termin茅e, et je crois que ma copine dirait que j'ai confiance en moi. Je suis d鈥檃ccord avec les deux.
J'ai trois fr猫res鈥- Julio, Phillipe et Kevin. Julio est un homme d'affaires et c'est lui qui voyage le plus dans notre famille. Je suis tr猫s jalouse ! Philippe est mon deuxi猫me fr猫re et nous nous ressemblons beaucoup. Et Kevin, c鈥檈st le plus jeune, mais le plus fort ! Il peut me porter facilement !
Je parle trois langues couramment: le n茅erlandais, le fran莽ais et l'anglais. Mais ma m猫re dit que je parle bien le lingala aussi. C'est une langue du Congo et c'est sa langue maternelle.
Ma m猫re est n茅e au Congo, et elle est venue ici, en Belgique o霉 elle a rencontr茅 mon p猫re, qui est aussi Belge. Ma m猫re est extravertie et positive, mon p猫re est cr茅atif et patient.
Maintenant, que tu sais un peu plus de moi et ma famille, on va d茅couvrir les gens dans la ville. On y va !
Comment tu t'appelles ?
Je m'appelle Sarah.
Et toi ?
Je m'appelle Kayum.
Tu as quel 芒ge ?
J'ai 30 ans.
Et toi ?
Et j'ai aussi 30 ans.
D'o霉 viens-tu ?
Je viens, a l'origine, du nord de la France, de Lille, mais j'habite 脿 Cologne, en Allemagne.
C'est quoi votre relation ?
Nous sommes des copines, juste.
On est des bonnes copines, on 茅tait ensemble 脿 l'茅cole secondaire, et maintenant on se voit quand on est 脿 l'universit茅, pour prendre des petits caf茅s.
Tu parles quelles langues ?
Je parle le fran莽ais, l'anglais, l'allemand, bien s没r.
L'italien, un peu d'espagnol, et j'apprends en ce moment le grec.
Waouh, quelle polyglotte !
Et toi, Kayum ?
Et moi, l'anglais, l'espagnol, et le comorien. Parce que je suis originaire des iles Comores.
Waouh ! C'est int茅ressant d'apprendre comment les gens se d茅crivent et comment ils d茅crivent les autres.
C'est super car il y a beaucoup de gens diff茅rents.
Translation
Hi! I鈥檓 Rachel! I am a graphic designer and I live in Brussels, in Belgium.
My family would describe me as determined and I think my girlfriend would say I have confidence in myself鈥 I would agree with both!
I have three brothers - Julio, Phillipe and Kevin. Julio is a businessman and travels more than anyone in the family. I am very jealous! Philippe is my second brother and we look the most alike. And Kevin is the youngest but the strongest! He can pick me up easily!
I speak three languages fluently; Dutch, French and English. But my mum says I can speak Lingala well too. It is a language of Congo and it is her mother tongue.
My mum was born in Congo and she came here, to Belgium, where she met my dad who is also Belgian. My mum is out-going and positive, my dad is creative and patient.
Now you know a bit about me and my family- let鈥檚 find out more about people in the city!
What鈥檚 your name?
I鈥檓 called Sarah.
And you?
I鈥檓 called Kayum.
How old are you?
I鈥檓 30 years old.
And you?
And I鈥檓 also 30 years old.
Where are you from?
I鈥檓, originally, from the north of France, Lille. But I live in Cologne, in Germany.
What鈥檚 your relationship?
We鈥檙e just friends.
We are good friends, we know each other from secondary school, and now we see each other when we鈥檙e at university, to go and drink coffee.
What languages do you speak?
I speak french, english, german, of course.
Italian, a bit of spanish and I鈥檓 learning greek at the moment.
Wow, what a polyglot!
Wow! It鈥檚 interesting to learn how people describe themselves and how they describe others.
It's great because there are a lot of different people.
Vocabulary - Describing appearance
Describe physical appearance or personality using adjectives and either:
the verb 锚迟谤别 - to be
the verb avoir - to have
To ask what someone looks like or what sort of person they are, say:
Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. - Describe yourself
Describing appearance and personality using '锚迟谤别' (to be)
To describe someone鈥檚 physical appearance or their personality, use the relevant part of the verb Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (to be):
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | I am |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | you (singular informal) are |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | he/it is |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | she/it is |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | we are |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | you (plural/formal) are |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | they (masculine plural) are |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | they (feminine plural) are |
For example:
Je suis timide. 鈥 I鈥檓 shy.
Mon fr猫re est emb锚tant. 鈥 My brother is annoying.
Mes parents sont strictes. 鈥 My parents are strict.
Mon chat est gros. 鈥 My cat is fat.
Useful adjectives for describing people using the verb 锚迟谤别 include:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| petit(e) | little, short (height) |
| grand(e) | tall, big, large |
| mince | thin, slim |
| gros/grosse | fat |
| beau/bel/belle | beautiful |
| laid(e) | ugly |
For example:
Ma m猫re est tr猫s petite. - My mum is really small.
Sa copine est belle. - Her girlfriend is beautiful.
Je ne suis pas tr猫s grand. - I am not very tall.
Describing hair and eyes using 'avoir' (to have)
To describe someone鈥檚 hair and eyes, use the relevant part of the verb Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. (to have):
| French | English |
|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | I have |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | you (informal) have |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | he/it has |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | she/it has |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | we have |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | you (plural/formal) have |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | they (masculine plural) have |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | they (feminine plural) have |
For example:
闯鈥檃颈 les yeux bleus. 鈥 I have blue eyes.
Ma grand-m猫re a les cheveux gris. 鈥 My grandma has grey hair.
闯鈥檃颈 un chien noir et blanc. 鈥 I have a black and white dog.
Useful vocabulary for describing people using the verb avoir includes:
| French | English | French | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| les cheveux | hair | roux | red (hair) |
| les yeux | eyes | blanc/blanche | white |
| bleu(e) | blue | gris(e) | grey |
| vert(e) | green | blond(e) | blonde |
| marron | brown | court(e) | short (hair) |
| noir(e) | black | long/longue | long |
Using '锚迟谤别' and 'avoir' - Mini quiz
Complete the following sentences with the correct verb.
Je _____ grand.
I am tall.
Je suis grand.
Suis is the 鈥業鈥 form of the verb 锚迟谤别 (to be).
Nous _____ paresseux.
We are lazy.
Nous sommes paresseux.
Sommes is the 鈥榳e鈥 form of the verb 锚迟谤别 (to be).
Tu ___ les yeux verts ?
Do you have green eyes?
Tu as les yeux verts ?
As is the you (singular informal) form of the verb avoir (to have).
Elles ___ les cheveux longs.
They have long hair.
Elles ont les cheveux longs.
Ont is the 鈥榯hey鈥 form of the verb avoir (to have).
Reading practice
Read the following article and decide if the statements are true or false.
Ma m猫re, Jenny est gentille et s茅rieuse. Malheureusement, elle ne sait pas bien faire la cuisine et ses repas sont rarement d茅licieux.
Je m鈥檈ntends bien avec mon p猫re, David. Il est travailleur et 补驳谤茅补产濒别, et il aide sa famille dans toutes les situations. Il a un bon sens de l'humour et j鈥檃i toujours confiance en lui.
Mon fr猫re, Alex, est amusant et bavard et nous nous ressemblons. Il partage ma passion pour les activit茅s sportives.
Chez nous, on adore les animaux et nous avons un chat, Whiskers, et un chien, Rocky. Whiskers est vieux et paresseux, tandis que Rocky est un chien jeune et fou 鈥 il aime jouer tout le temps.
Are the following statements true or false?
- Emma鈥檚 mum is serious.
False
The text says:
Ma m猫re, Jenny, est gentille et s茅rieuse.
My mum, Jenny, is kind and responsible/conscientious.
- Emma鈥檚 mum is not a good cook.
True
The text says:
Malheureusement, elle ne sait pas faire bien la cuisine et ses repas sont rarement d茅licieux.
Unfortunately, she doesn't know how to cook well and her meals are rarely delicious.
- Emma鈥檚 dad always helps his family.
True
The text says:
鈥 il aide sa famille dans toutes les situations 鈥
鈥 he helps his family in all situations 鈥
- Emma and her brother Alex are not similar.
False
The text says:
Nous nous ressemblons. Il partage ma passion pour les activit茅s sportives.
We are similar. He shares my passion for sporting activities.
- Emma鈥檚 cat is old and her dog is crazy.
True
The text says:
Whiskers est vieux et paresseux, tandis que Rocky est un chien jeune et fou.
Whiskers is old and lazy, while Rocky is a young and crazy dog.
Click or tap on the Show more button to read the translation of the text.
My mum Jenny is kind and serious. Unfortunately she cannot cook very well and her meals are rarely delicious.
I get on well with my dad David. He is hard working and nice and he helps his family in all situations. He has a good sense of humour and I always trust him.
My brother Alex is funny and chatty and we look alike. He shares my passion for sporting activities.
At home, we love animals and we have a cat, Whiskers, and a dog, Rocky. Whiskers is old and lazy whereas Rocky is a young and crazy dog - he likes to play all the time.
Useful vocabulary - Describing personality and other characteristics
Adjectives
Here are some useful adjectives to describe yourself and others. Remember to use the verb 锚迟谤别 with these adjectives:
| French | English | French | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| 补驳谤茅补产濒别 | pleasant, nice, agreeable | heureux/heureuse | happy |
| amusant(e) | funny, fun, amusing | jeune | young (m,f) |
| bavard(e) | chatty, talkative | joli(e) | pretty, attractive |
| 诲谤么濒别 | funny | 尘茅肠丑补苍迟(别) | nasty, mean |
| 别驳辞茂蝉迟别 | selfish | paresseux/paresseuse | lazy |
| 别尘产锚迟补苍迟(别) | annoying | 蝉茅谤颈别耻虫/蝉茅谤颈别耻蝉别 | conscientious, responsible |
| 蹿颈别谤/蹿颈猫谤别 | proud | sympathique/sympa | nice, kind, friendly |
| timide | shy, timid | travailleur/travailleuse | hard-working |
Verbs
Useful verbs to describe personality and personal qualities include:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| aider | to help |
| avoir confiance en | to trust |
| avoir le sens de l鈥檋umour | to have a sense of humour |
| chatter/tchatter | to chat |
| comprendre | to understand |
| 茅苍别谤惫别谤 | to annoy |
| 锚迟谤别 蹿颈别谤/蹿颈猫谤别 de | to be proud of |
| ressembler/se ressembler 脿 | to look like + noun/to look alike |
All Foundation Tier vocabulary listed in this guide can be found on the vocabulary sheet below.
Grammar - How to use adjectives
Adjectives describe a noun and all French adjectives agree with the noun in gender and number. Most adjectives come after the noun they describe.
The general rule is:
for feminine nouns, add e
for masculine plural nouns, add s
for feminine plural nouns, add es
| Masculine singular | Feminine singular | Masculine plural | Feminine plural | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | intelligent |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | green |
For example:
闯鈥檃颈 les yeux verts. - I have green eyes.
Les chiens sont tr猫s intelligents. 鈥 The dogs are very intelligent.
There are different rules for adjectives ending in certain letters.
Click or tap on Show more to find out about forming the different forms of adjectives ending with the following letters:
- x
- el and en
- al
- f
Adjectives ending in x
When an adjective ends in x, remove the x and add se to make it feminine. For example:
Mon chat est heureux. - My cat is happy.
Ma s艙ur est toujours heureuse. 鈥 My sister is always happy.
For masculine plural nouns, keep the x. For example:
Mon fr猫re est paresseux. 鈥 My brother is lazy.
Mes copains sont paresseux. 鈥 My friends are lazy.
For feminine plural nouns, remove the x and add ses. For example:
Ma s艙ur est paresseuse. 鈥 My sister is lazy.
Mes copines sont paresseuses. 鈥 My (female) friends are lazy.
Adjectives ending in el and en
When an adjective ends in el, add le to make it feminine. If the adjective ends in en, add ne to make it feminine.
Add s to make the masculine adjectives plural and les or nes to make the feminine adjectives plural.
| Masculine singular | Feminine singular | Masculine plural | Feminine plural | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | traditional |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | canadiens | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Canadian |
For example:
Ma s艙ur est gentille. 鈥 My sister is kind.
Mes copains sont v茅g茅tariens. 鈥 My friends are vegetarian.
Adjectives ending in al
When an adjective ends in al, add an e to make it feminine and es to make it feminine plural.
To make it masculine plural, change the al to aux. For example:
Mon petit copain est g茅nial. 鈥 My boyfriend is great.
Mes parents sont g茅niaux. 鈥 My parents are great.
Adjectives ending in f
When an adjective ends in f, remove the f and add ve to make it feminine. For example:
Mon fr猫re est tr猫s actif. 鈥 My brother is very active.
Ma m猫re est tr猫s active. 鈥 My mum is very active.
To make the adjectives plural, add s with masculine nouns and ves for feminine nouns. For example:
Mes fr猫res sont tr猫s actifs. 鈥 My brothers are very active.
Mes s艙urs sont tr猫s actives. 鈥 My sisters are very active.
Irregular adjectives
Some adjectives are completely irregular, meaning they do not follow the rules when agreeing with feminine and plural nouns.
Useful irregular adjectives include:
| Masculine singular | Feminine singular | Masculine plural | Feminine plural | English |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | beautiful, handsome, nice (weather) |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | big, large, lots of |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | crazy |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | good |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | hardworking |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | long |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | new |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | old |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | white |
| Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | Check your connection, refresh the page and try again. | kind |
Using adjectives - Mini quiz
Choose the correct adjective in each of the following sentences:
Mes cheveux sont [blond/blonds/blondes].
Mes cheveux sont blonds.
My hair is blond.
Cheveux (hair) is masculine and plural, so the adjective ends in s.
Ma s艙ur est [蝉茅谤颈别耻虫/蝉茅谤颈别耻蝉别/s茅rieuses].
Ma s艙ur est s茅rieuse.
My sister is responsible.
厂舱耻谤 (sister) is feminine, and as this is an adjective ending in x, the feminine singular form ends in se.
Ma m猫re est travailleur/travailleuse/travailleuses.
Ma m猫re est travailleuse.
My mum is hard-working.
惭猫谤别 (mum) is feminine singular, and this irregular adjective therefore ends in euse.
Mon ami Lucas est tr猫s beau/belle/beaux.
Mon ami Lucas est tr猫s beau.
My friend Lucas is very handsome.
Ami (male friend) is masculine singular, and this irregular adjective is beau.
Find out more about adjectival agreements in the Position of adjectives in French guide.
Listening practice
Listen to three people talking about what makes a good friend and answer the questions.
Click or tap on the purple START button when you are ready to begin the activity.
Video - Describing people in French
Watch the video to understand more about using 锚迟谤别 and avoir when describing yourself and others.
Use the verbs '锚迟谤别' and 'avoir' to describe yourself and others
Describing people in French
When you鈥檙e describing how you or other people look or are - then 锚迟谤别 - the 鈥巚erb to be is a good place to start.鈥
Je suis - I am or elle est - she is.鈥
Je suis grand - I am tall.鈥
Elle est petite - She is small.鈥
Je suis sportif - I am sporty. 鈥
鈥Elle est contente - She is happy.鈥
Then it鈥檚 good to be able to say what people have using the verb avoir - to 鈥巋ave.
闯鈥檃颈 - I have
Elle a - she has.
闯鈥檃颈 les cheveux longs - I have long hair鈥.
Elle a les yeux bruns - She has brown eyes. 鈥
Then you can say what you wear using porter - to wear鈥.
鈥je porte - I wear.
elle porte - she wears.
Je porte des lunettes - I wear glasses.
Elle porte un foulard - She wears a headscarf.鈥
So with 锚迟谤别 - to be, avoir - to have or porter - to wear you can say a lot about 鈥巠ourself or other people.鈥
Vocabulary sheet
Click or tap on the image below for a list of useful vocabulary to use when describing yourself or others.
Higher Tier - Vocabulary - Describing personality
Useful Higher Tier adjectives include:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| patient(e) | patient |
| sensible | sensitive |
| vif/vive | lively |
Useful Higher Tier verbs include:
| French | English |
|---|---|
| critiquer | to criticise |
| d茅pendre de | to depend on |
| sembler | to seem |
All vocabulary listed in this guide can be found on the vocabulary sheet below.
Higher Tier - Vocabulary sheet
Click or tap on the image below for a list of useful Higher Tier vocabulary to use when describing yourself or others.
Now you have revised the important vocabulary and key grammar points for describing yourself and others, why not have a look at Describing life at school in French?
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