Is « couteau » masculine or feminine?
« couteau » is masculine. You say le couteau.
Article forms
| With the definite article | le couteau |
| With the indefinite article | un couteau |
| With the partitive article | du couteau |
Plural
The plural is couteaux (les couteaux). A noun keeps its gender in the plural; only the article stops showing it.
Why the gender
couteau ends in
-eau. Nouns ending in
-eau are usually masculine,
so couteau follows the pattern.
The full rules by ending cover every common
suffix.
In a sentence
-
Il y a un couteau.
There is a knife. -
Tu as un couteau ?
Do you have a knife? -
J'ai un couteau.
I've got a knife.
Example sentences from Tatoeba, used under CC BY 2.0 FR. Each links to its source sentence.
Related words
Other common nouns that end the same way:
Common questions
Is « couteau » masculine or feminine?
« couteau » is masculine. You say le couteau.
Is it « la couteau » or « le couteau »?
It is « le couteau ». « la couteau » is incorrect.
Check another word, or read the complete guide to French noun gender.