Physical Descriptions with avoir and être

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Physical Descriptions in French

Descriptions

Les descriptions

Setting up an online dating profile, talking to friends about someone you met, bragging about a new baby, and telling the police about a suspect have one thing in common: physical descriptions. Learn all the French vocabulary you need to describe the most common physical characteristics.

​Asking for a description

To ask what a person looks like, you need the verb être (to be):

What does he look like?		Comment est-il ?
What does she look like?		Comment est-elle ?

Adjectives with Être

​When describing someone, the verb you need depends on which characteristic you’re talking about. General characteristics need être.

Bob is tall. = Bob est grand. Il est grand.

Adjective Agreement

All adjectives have to agree is number (is the noun a singular or plural one) and gender (is the noun feminine or masculine) with the noun they are describing.

ex: La prof est grande. "La" before "prof" indicates the noun is feminine and singular. Therefore the adjective "grande" has to be femining and singular.

Les étudiants bruyants sont petits, blonds, et jeunes. "Les" indicates the noun is plural and étudiant is a masculine noun. Therefore all adjectives used must be in their masculine and plural form.

​Le verbe Être

Le verbe Être = the verb To Be
(English infinitives are written as "t0 + action word. French infinitives end with ER, IR, or RE)

Je suis (first person singular) I am
Tu es (second person singular) You are
Il est (third person singular masculine nouns) He is
Elle est (third person singular feminine nouns) She is
On est (conjugated as a 3rd person singular noun) One is, Everybody is
(translated as One, Everyone, Everybody, We, They)

Nous sommes (first person plural) We are
Vous êtes (second person plural AND second person singular : polite form) You (all) are or You are (formal)
Ils sont (third person plural - masculine nous and 2+ group of mixed gender nouns) They are
Elles sont (third person plural - feminine nouns) They are

​Adjectives

​

He / She is…	Il est…	Elle est…
athletic	athlétique	athlétique
bald	chauve	chauve
balding	dégarni	dégarnie
beautiful		belle
fat	gros	grosse
handsome	beau, joli
pretty		jolie
short	petit	petite
skinny	maigre	maigre
tall	grand	grande
thin	mince	mince
ugly	moche, laid	moche, laide
weak	faible	faible

​Adjectives Spelling

Most adjectives follow the "add an e" to make it feminine and "add an s" to make it plural formula.

Grand, Grande, Grands, Grandes
Petit, Petite, Petits, Petites

If the masculine form of the adjective already ends with an "e" NO change is made for the feminine form.

Jeune, Jeune, Jeunes, Jeunes
Mince, Mince, Minces, Minces

If the masculine form of the adjective ends with an "s" NO change is made in the masculine plural form but an "e" is added for the feminine
Gris, Grise, Gris, Grises
Gros, Grosse, Gros, Grosses

There are a few adjectives that need a doubled final consonant and an added "e" to make the adjective feminine.
Moyen, Moyenne, Moyens, Moyennes

There are adjectives that have distinct differences for the feminine and the masculine forms
Beau, Belle, Beaux, Belles

​Adjectives with AVOIR

​When describing a specific part of the body, you need the verb avoir (to have).

I have red hair. J'ai les cheveux roux.
Les cheveux is a masculine and plural noun therefore the adjective(s) must also be in their masculine and plural form.

They have long, straight, and light brown hair.
Elles ont les cheveux longs, raides, et châtains.

​Le Verbe AVOIR

​J' ai (first person singular. Adjectives are fem or masc depending on gender of the speaker) I have
Tu as (second person singular. Adjectives are fem or masc depending on gender of the subject) You have
Il a (third person singular. Adjectives are masculine) He has
Elle a (third person singular. Adjectives are feminine) She has
On a (third person singular. Adjectives are feminine or masculine depending on the subject) One has, Everyone has

Nous avons (first person plural. Adjectives are feminine or masculine depending on the subject) We have
Vous avez (second person plural OR second person singular. Adjectives match suject) You (all) have
Ils ont (third person plural. Adjectives are all masculine and plural) They have
Elles ont (third person plural. Adjectives are all feminine and plural) They have