Learn French: Il a un prénom français. - He has a French first name.

Il a un prénom français.

He has a French first name.

Breakdown of Il a un prénom français.

Questions & Answers about Il a un prénom français.

Why use prénom instead of just nom?

In French, un prénom specifically means a first name. The word un nom usually refers to a person's last name (family name). Since the prefix pré- means before, the prénom is the name that comes before the family name!

Why is français placed after prénom?

In English, we say a French first name, putting the adjective first. In French, most adjectives, especially those for nationality, color, or shape, come after the noun they describe. So the word order is literally a first name French (un prénom français).

Why isn't français capitalized?

In French, adjectives for nationalities and languages are not capitalized. You only capitalize them when using them as a noun to refer to a person, like un Français (a French person). Since français is an adjective describing the first name here, it stays lowercase.

What is the little mark under the c in français?

That is called a cedilla (or cédille). It is placed under the letter c before an a, o, or u to make it sound soft like an s instead of a hard k. Without it, the word would be pronounced fran-kay!