Breakdown of Elles sont fières de leur travail.
être
to be
elles
they (feminine)
de
of / from / any (in negative sentences) / about (concerning)
leur
their (singular and plural forms: leur, leurs)
Questions & Answers about Elles sont fières de leur travail.
Why does the adjective fières have a grave accent (è)?
Do the masculine and feminine forms (fier and fière) sound different when spoken?
Actually, they sound exactly the same! With most adjectives ending in -er (like premier), the "r" is silent until you make it feminine (première). However, fier is an exception where the "r" is always pronounced. The spelling changes to fière to follow the standard grammar rule, but the pronunciation stays the same. The plural -s is also silent.
Why use leur instead of leurs when the subject Elles is plural?
In French, possessive words agree with the thing being owned, not the owners. Even though "they" (Elles) are plural, the word for "work" (travail) is singular. Because they share a single collective thing, we use the singular leur. If they were proud of their achievements (plural), it would be leurs.
Do we always use de after fier?