Breakdown of Il y a deux chats et trois chiens.
le chat
the cat
le chien
the dog
et
and
il y a
there is / there are
Questions & Answers about Il y a deux chats et trois chiens.
Why does the sentence use Il y a (there is) instead of a plural form for multiple cats and dogs?
In French, il y a is a fixed expression that means both "there is" and "there are". Even though we are talking about multiple animals (deux chats, trois chiens), il y a never changes to a plural form.
How do you pronounce the numbers deux and trois in this sentence? Do you say the last letters?
No, the x in deux and the s in trois are completely silent here. Because the next words (chats and chiens) start with consonants, you do not pronounce the ending letters of the numbers.
Do deux and trois change their spelling to match the gender of the animals?
No, cardinal numbers like deux and trois never change their spelling to match the gender of the noun they describe. The only number that changes is one: un for masculine words and une for feminine words.
Do the words chats and chiens sound different from the singular words chat and chien?