Question 1

Why is the adjective nette spelled with a double "t"?

Accepted Answer

Because it describes a feminine noun. The masculine form is net. In French, to make adjectives ending in -et feminine, you double the final consonant before adding the e, giving us nette.

Question 2

I thought words ending in -o were usually masculine. Why do we use the feminine cette and nette with photo?

Accepted Answer

You are right that most nouns ending in -o are masculine! However, photo is an abbreviation of the word photographie. Because the full word is feminine, the shortened version keeps the feminine gender.

Question 3

Does nette always mean "clear"?

Accepted Answer

When talking about screens, pictures, or vision, nette means "sharp" or "in focus". In other situations, it can also mean "clean" (like a spotless room) or "clear-cut" (like a definite answer).

Question 4

Why does the negative part go around the verb as n'est pas instead of staying together?

Accepted Answer

In French, the two parts of the negation (ne and pas) act like a sandwich around the conjugated verb. Since the verb is est, it goes in the middle. Because est starts with a vowel, ne drops its e to become n', giving us n'est pas.

Cette photo n'est pas nette.

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