Question 1

Why is it petite instead of petit?

Accepted Answer

In French, adjectives must match the gender of the noun they describe. Because voiture (car) is a feminine noun, we have to use the feminine form of the adjective. For regular adjectives like petit, we just add an -e to the end to make it feminine: petite.

Question 2

Does adding the -e to petite change how it is pronounced?

Accepted Answer

Yes! In the masculine word petit, the final -t is silent. But when we add the -e to make it petite, that -t is no longer the last letter, so we pronounce it.

Question 3

I thought French adjectives usually go after the noun. Why is petite before voiture?

Accepted Answer

You are right that most French adjectives come after the noun. However, a small group of common adjectives always go before the noun. These usually describe Beauty, Age, Number, Goodness, or Size (often remembered as the BANGS rule). Since petite describes size, it goes before voiture.

Question 4

Why does là have an accent mark on the letter 'a'?

Accepted Answer

The accent mark distinguishes it from another very common word. Without the accent, la means "the" (as in la petite voiture). With the accent, là means "there". They are pronounced exactly the same way, so the accent only helps when you are reading and writing.

La petite voiture est là.

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