Question 1

Why do "yours" and "theirs" have les in front of them (les vôtres, les leurs)?

Accepted Answer

In French, possessive pronouns always need a definite article (le, la, or les) in front of them. Because valises (suitcases) is plural, we use les. Think of it literally as "the yours" or "the theirs".

Question 2

Valise is a feminine word. Do les vôtres and les leurs change to match feminine words?

Accepted Answer

For plural objects like ces valises, the article is always les for both masculine and feminine words. The words vôtres and leurs just add an -s for plural, but they do not have separate masculine or feminine spellings. If we were talking about a single suitcase, it would be la vôtre or la leur to match the feminine noun.

Question 3

Why does vôtres have an accent (circumflex) over the "o"?

Accepted Answer

When you say "your suitcase" (votre valise), the word votre describes the noun and has no accent. But when you replace the noun and say "yours" (la vôtre or les vôtres), it becomes a pronoun and takes a circumflex. It also has a slightly longer "o" sound when spoken!

Question 4

Since valise is feminine, why is the word for "these" ces instead of something feminine?

Accepted Answer

The word ces (meaning "these" or "those") is used for all plural nouns, whether they are masculine or feminine. You only need to worry about gender for singular "this" or "that" (ce or cet for masculine, cette for feminine).

Est-ce que ces valises sont les vôtres ou les leurs ?

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