Learn French: Cette ressemblance physique est trompeuse. - This physical resemblance is deceptive.

Cette ressemblance physique est trompeuse.

This physical resemblance is deceptive.

Breakdown of Cette ressemblance physique est trompeuse.

Questions & Answers about Cette ressemblance physique est trompeuse.

Why use trompeuse instead of a word like 'déceptive'?

The French word déceptif is a false friend that actually means 'disappointing'. To say something is deceptive or misleading, you use trompeur (masculine) or trompeuse (feminine), which comes from the verb tromper (to deceive or trick).

How do we know to use the feminine form trompeuse here?

It describes the noun ressemblance, which is feminine. You can also spot the gender from the feminine demonstrative adjective cette (this). Adjectives ending in -eur generally change to -euse to match feminine nouns.

Why doesn't the adjective physique have an extra 'e' added to match the feminine noun?

The base masculine form of physique already ends in an unaccented 'e'. In French, when a masculine adjective already ends in 'e', the feminine form stays exactly the same.

How does ressemblance fit with this lesson's focus on similarity?

While this lesson teaches how to express exact identity using structures like la même que (the same as), une ressemblance (a resemblance) is used when two things are similar but not exactly identical. It comes from the verb ressembler à (to look like).