Learn French: Notre maman prépare le dîner.

Notre maman prépare le dîner.

Our mom is making dinner.

Breakdown of Notre maman prépare le dîner.

Questions & Answers about Notre maman prépare le dîner.

Why do we use notre instead of nos if "our" means there are multiple owners?

In French, the possessive word matches the thing being owned, not the owners! Even though "our" means there are multiple children, there is only one mom (maman). Because the noun is singular, we use notre. If we were talking about "our moms", we would use nos.

Is notre masculine or feminine?

It is both! Unlike "my" (mon or ma) or "your" (ton or ta), the words for "our" (notre), "your" plural or formal (votre), and "their" (leur) do not change for masculine or feminine. As long as the noun is singular, you just use notre.

Why does prépare mean "is making"? Doesn't it mean "makes"?

It means both! French does not have a separate tense for "is doing" something right now. Notre maman prépare can mean "Our mom makes" in general, or "Our mom is making" right now. You just pick the English translation that fits the situation best.

Why is there a le before dîner? We just say "making dinner" in English.

French nouns almost always need an article (like "a" or "the") in front of them. While we leave it out for meals in English, French requires le before dîner.