Question 1

Why is there a des before fruits when English just says 'fruits'?

Accepted Answer

In English, we say 'These are fruits' without an article. But in French, nouns almost always need an article. Since fruits is plural, we use the plural indefinite article des. It acts like the plural of un or une. You can think of it as meaning 'some', but in French, it is grammatically required here.

Question 2

How do you pronounce the 's' at the end of fruits?

Accepted Answer

You don't! Just like most regular plural nouns in French, the added s at the end of fruits is completely silent. When speaking, listeners know you mean more than one fruit because they hear the plural article des right before it.

Question 3

I learned that ce means 'this' or 'it'. Why does it mean 'these' here?

Accepted Answer

Ce is a very handy pronoun. When used to introduce or point something out, it works for both singular and plural things. For one item, we say c'est (this is / it is). For multiple items, ce pairs with the plural verb sont (are) to become ce sont (these are / those are).

Question 4

Why isn't it ces sont des fruits?

Accepted Answer

When introducing things with the verb to be, the pronoun ce is fixed and never takes a plural s. The verb changes to the plural sont, but ce stays exactly the same. The plural word ces is only used directly in front of a noun, like in the phrase ces fruits (these fruits).

Ce sont des fruits.

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