Learn French: Ce gratte-ciel est le plus haut. - This skyscraper is the tallest.

Ce gratte-ciel est le plus haut.

This skyscraper is the tallest.

Breakdown of Ce gratte-ciel est le plus haut.

Questions & Answers about Ce gratte-ciel est le plus haut.

Why do we use le plus haut instead of just plus haut?

Plus haut on its own means "taller" (a comparison). To say "the tallest" (a superlative), you must add the definite article le, la, or les. Because gratte-ciel is a masculine singular noun, we use le.

Do I pronounce the 's' in plus and link it to haut?

No, you don't! The word haut starts with an "aspirated h" (h aspiré). In French, this means you are not allowed to make a liaison (a linking sound) with the consonant before it. You just pronounce it as "le plu o" (without any 'z' sound in the middle).

Where does the word gratte-ciel come from?

It literally means "scrapes sky"! Gratte comes from the verb gratter (to scrape or scratch) and ciel means "sky". The French word is actually a direct translation of the English word "skyscraper".

How would this sentence change if we were talking about a feminine noun, like la tour (the tower)?

The superlative must match the gender of the noun it describes. For a feminine noun, the "the" changes to la, and the adjective also needs a feminine ending: Cette tour est la plus haute.