Learn French: Ce vieux théâtre est très beau. - This old theater is very beautiful.

Ce vieux théâtre est très beau.

This old theater is very beautiful.

Breakdown of Ce vieux théâtre est très beau.

Questions & Answers about Ce vieux théâtre est très beau.

Why do we use ce instead of cet or cette for "this"?

Ce is the masculine singular word for "this" or "that" when the next word starts with a consonant, like théâtre. You would use cette for feminine words, and cet for masculine words that start with a vowel sound.

Why does vieux come before théâtre? I thought adjectives usually go after the noun.

Most French adjectives do go after the noun! However, a special group of short, common adjectives go before the noun. They usually describe Beauty, Age, Number, Goodness, or Size (often remembered with the acronym BANGS). Since vieux describes age, it goes before the noun.

I've seen vieil and bel used for "old" and "beautiful". Why are we using vieux and beau here?

Vieil and bel are special forms used only when a masculine adjective comes directly before a noun starting with a vowel sound. Here, vieux is followed by a consonant (théâtre), and beau is at the end of the sentence, so they both stay in their standard masculine forms.

Can I use beaucoup instead of très to say "very beautiful"?

No, you must use très (very) with adjectives like beau. Beaucoup means "a lot" or "much" and is used with verbs or nouns, such as J'aime beaucoup (I like a lot) or beaucoup de théâtres (a lot of theaters).