Learn French: Cette tour est la moins haute. - This tower is the least tall.

Cette tour est la moins haute.

This tower is the least tall.

Breakdown of Cette tour est la moins haute.

Questions & Answers about Cette tour est la moins haute.

Why is it la moins instead of le moins?

In French, the article in a superlative (le, la, or les) must match the gender and number of the noun it describes. Because tour (tower) is a feminine singular noun, we use la moins (the least) to match it.

Could I say Cette tour est la tour la moins haute?

Yes, you can! But just like in English, repeating the noun isn't always necessary. Since we already know we are talking about Cette tour, you can just drop the second noun and say est la moins haute (is the least tall).

Do I make a liaison between the 's' in moins and the word haute?

No, you don't. The word haute starts with what is called an aspirated 'h' in French. Even though the 'h' is silent, it acts like a consonant and blocks liaisons. So, you do not pronounce a 'z' sound between moins and haute.

I thought tour was masculine, like in 'le Tour de France'?

The word tour actually changes meaning depending on its gender! Un tour (masculine) means a turn, a trick, or a trip/tour. But une tour (feminine), which is the one used in this sentence, means a tower or a high-rise building.