Colors & Adjectives

Why this matters

Colors are everywhere — clothes, signs, food, art. Mastering them also teaches you the golden rule of French grammar: adjectives agree with the nouns they describe. Get this right and you'll sound dramatically more natural.

🦝 Remy says: "My fur is gris et brun — gray and brown. But honestly, I think I look fantastique in any color. Let's paint the French world together!"

Core Lesson: Les Couleurs & Adjective Agreement

The colors

| Masculine | Feminine | Pronunciation | English | |

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| | rouge | rouge | [roozh] | red | | bleu | bleue | [bluh] | blue | | vert | verte | [vair / vairt] | green | | jaune | jaune | [zhohn] | yellow | | noir | noire | [nwar] | black | | blanc | blanche | [blon / blonsh] | white | | gris | grise | [gree / greez] | gray | | violet | violette | [vyo-leh / vyo-let] | purple | | orange | orange | [oh-ronzh] | orange | | rose | rose | [rohz] | pink | | marron | marron | [mah-ron] | brown | | beige | beige | [behzh] | beige |

The golden rule: adjective agreement

French adjectives must match the gender and number of the noun they describe.

| | Masculine | Feminine | Masc. Plural | Fem. Plural | |--|

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| | bleu | un livre bleu | une robe bleue | des livres bleus | des robes bleues | | vert | un sac vert | une veste verte | des sacs verts | des vestes vertes | | noir | un chat noir | une voiture noire | des chats noirs | des voitures noires |

Colors that never change

Some colors are invariable — they stay the same for all genders and numbers:

| Color | Example | |

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| | orange | un sac orange / une robe orange / des chaussures orange | | marron | un pantalon marron / une veste marron | | rose | un chapeau rose / une fleur rose |

🦝 Remy's memory trick: "Think of orange, marron, and rose as guest colors — they never change to fit in. They're too cool to follow the rules. Remember: Orange, Marron, Rose = OMR — Other Means Rules-free!"

Colors go AFTER the noun in French!

| English | French | |

|

--| | a red car | une voiture rouge | | blue eyes | des yeux bleus | | a white shirt | une chemise blanche |

📝 Exercise 1 — Fill in the Blank

Choose the correct form of the color:

1. J'ai une voiture _______ (noir).
2. Il porte un manteau _______ (gris).
3. Elle a des chaussures _______ (blanc).
4. Le ciel est _______ (bleu).
5. Nous avons des fleurs _______ (rose).

✅ Answers:

1. noire
2. gris
3. blanches
4. bleu
5. rose (invariable)

📝 Exercise 2 — Make a Sentence

Use the prompts to build sentences with correct adjective agreement.

1. Her jacket is green and her shoes are white.
2. I have a blue book and a red pen.
3. The black cat has gray eyes.

✅ Model answers:

1. Sa veste est verte et ses chaussures sont blanches.
2. J'ai un livre bleu et un stylo rouge.
3. Le chat noir a des yeux gris.

📝 Exercise 3 — Translate into French

1. a yellow house
2. black pants
3. a red and white flag
4. green eyes
5. orange shoes

✅ Answers:

1. une maison jaune
2. un pantalon noir
3. un drapeau rouge et blanc
4. des yeux verts
5. des chaussures orange

🎯 Today's Challenge

Look around your room and describe five objects in French. Write: Mon/Ma [object] est [color]. Try to include at least one plural and one feminine noun to practice agreement.

⭐ Key Takeaways

• Colors are adjectives and must agree in gender and number with the noun.
• Most colors add -e for feminine and -s for plural; some irregular ones (blanc → blanche, violet → violette) need special attention.
• Orange, marron, and rose are invariable — they never change form.