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Je range les taille-crayons dans le tiroir.

Je range les taille-crayons dans le tiroir.
I am putting away the pencil sharpeners in the drawer.
From Lesson 440:Plural compound nouns·French

Questions & Answers about Je range les taille-crayons dans le tiroir.

Why does crayons get an 's' but taille doesn't in les taille-crayons?
Taille-crayon is a compound noun made of a verb (taille, from tailler, to cut/sharpen) and a noun (crayon, pencil). The rule for compound nouns is that verbs are invariable in French—they never take a plural -s. Therefore, only the noun part (crayon) gets pluralized.
Does the noun part of a verb-noun compound always get an 's' in the plural?
Historically, this was quite tricky because it depended on the logic of the object (e.g., does it act on one thing or multiple things?). However, the 1990 French spelling reform simplified this: for verb-noun compounds, you generally leave the singular without an -s (un taille-crayon) and simply add an -s to the noun in the plural (des taille-crayons).
Could I use je mets instead of je range to say 'I am putting'?
You could, but it changes the nuance slightly. Mettre is the generic verb for 'to put.' Ranger, however, specifically means 'to put away,' 'to tidy,' or 'to put in its proper place.' Using ranger implies the drawer is the correct, permanent home for the sharpeners.
Is the word tiroir (drawer) related to the verb tirer (to pull)?
Yes, exactly! A tiroir is literally 'a thing you pull.' Recognizing these verb-to-noun relationships—often formed using the suffix -oir to indicate a tool, object, or location—is a highly effective way to expand your vocabulary.

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