Breakdown of Elle est brésilienne.
Questions & Answers about Elle est brésilienne.
Why is there no article like une before brésilienne?
When stating a person's simple nationality, profession, or religion using il est or elle est, the word functions as an adjective rather than a noun. Therefore, French drops the indefinite article (un or une). Why isn't the word brésilienne capitalized in this sentence?
In French, nationalities are only capitalized when used as nouns representing people. Since the elle est construction treats the nationality as an adjective describing the subject, it stays lowercase. If I want to say "She is a famous Brazilian," can I just add célèbre to the end of this sentence?
No, you would have to change the structure entirely. Once you add an adjective (like célèbre) to modify the nationality, it becomes a noun phrase. You must then switch from elle est to c'est and include the article, which also forces the noun to be capitalized: C'est une Brésilienne célèbre. Learn Elle est brésilienne and more in French
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