Mon pantalon est trop large.

My pants are too loose.

Breakdown of Mon pantalon est trop large.

• être: to be
• mon: my
• trop: too
• le pantalon: the pants
• large: loose

Questions & Answers about Mon pantalon est trop large.

Why is it mon pantalon and not ma pantalon, since pantalon ends in -on and not in -e?

In French, the choice between mon and ma depends on grammatical gender, not on the final letter.

• Pantalon is a masculine noun: le pantalon.
• The masculine singular possessive is mon.
• So you must say: mon pantalon = my pants / my trousers.

The fact that pantalon ends in -on has nothing to do with its gender; gender is arbitrary and must be memorized with the noun: un pantalon (m).

Why is pantalon singular in French when in English we say pants in the plural?

French and English don’t match exactly in how they treat clothing words.

• English: pants, trousers, shorts are always plural.
• French: un pantalon, un short, un jean are singular nouns.

So:

• Mon pantalon est trop large.
  Literally: My pant is too wide.
  Natural English: My pants are too big / too loose.

French sees a pair of pants as one object; English tends to see it as a pair (two legs), so it uses the plural.

What exactly does trop mean here? Is it the same as très?

No, trop and très are different:

• trop = too (much) → indicates excess, more than is good.
  
  • Mon pantalon est trop large. = My pants are too big / too loose. (a problem)
• très = very → just intensifies, but not necessarily a problem.
  
  • Mon pantalon est très large. = My pants are very big / very loose. (maybe that’s fine)

So in this sentence, trop shows that the size is excessive for what you want.

Does large in French mean the same as large in English?

They’re related but not identical; large is a bit of a “false friend.”

In French:

• large most often means wide, loose, baggy.
  
  • Mon pantalon est trop large. → The waist/legs are too wide/loose.
• For “big” in general (size), French more often uses grand.
  
  • Un grand pantalon = a big (long/overall big) pair of pants.

In clothing context, large describes something that’s too wide or roomy, not necessarily long.

Why is it est trop large and not trop est large or est large trop?

French has a fairly fixed word order in this kind of sentence:

1. Subject: Mon pantalon
2. Verb: est
3. Adverb: trop
4. Adjective: large

So: Mon pantalon est trop large.

You can’t put trop before the verb in this structure (trop est large is wrong), and you normally don’t put it after the adjective here (est large trop sounds unnatural).

Why does large end in -e if pantalon is masculine? Isn’t -e usually feminine?

Many French adjectives have:

• a masculine form (often no -e)
• a feminine form (often with -e)

But some adjectives already end in -e in the masculine form. For those, the masculine and feminine look the same.

• large is one of these:
  • Masculine singular: un pantalon large
  • Feminine singular: une jupe large

So here:

• pantalon is masculine
• large is the masculine form (which just happens to end in -e)

Should large agree with pantalon in number and gender? What would the plural be?

Yes, adjectives agree in number and gender with the noun.

For pantalon (masculine):

• Singular: Mon pantalon est trop large.
• Plural: Mes pantalons sont trop larges.

Changes:

• mon → mes (my → my [plural])
• pantalon → pantalons (+s)
• est → sont (is → are)
• large → larges (+s to agree with plural noun)

Pronunciation note: that final -s in larges is usually silent in normal speech.

Can I say Mes pantalons sont trop larges? When would I use that?

Yes, that sentence is correct and means “My pants are too big/loose” referring to more than one pair of pants.

Use:

• Mon pantalon est trop large.
  When you’re talking about one specific pair.
• Mes pantalons sont trop larges.
  When you mean several pairs (for example, “All my pants are too big now.”)

Why is it est and not c’est or il est here?

You already have a clear subject: Mon pantalon.

• With a specific noun as subject, you use the plain verb est:
  • Mon pantalon est trop large.

Use c’est when you’re introducing or pointing to something more generally:

• C’est mon pantalon. = That’s my pair of pants.

Use il est with adjectives when the subject is a pronoun:

• Il est trop large. = It is too big/loose. (Referring back to le pantalon already mentioned)

How would I pronounce Mon pantalon est trop large?

Approximate English-style pronunciation:

• Mon → “mohn” (nasal on, like “mɔ̃”)
• pantalon → “pahn-tah-lohn” (final n not fully pronounced; nasal on)
• est → “eh” (like the “e” in “pet,” but shorter)
• trop → “troh” (final p silent; o like in “go” but pure)
• large → “larzh” (soft French r in the throat; final e barely pronounced, sounds like “larzh”)

Spoken smoothly:
[Mohn pahn-tah-lohn eh troh larzh]

What’s the difference between pantalon, jean, and pantalons?

• un pantalon → a pair of pants / trousers (any fabric, generic word)
• un jean → jeans (denim trousers; usually singular in French)
• des pantalons → pants in the plural, meaning several pairs.

Examples:

• Mon pantalon est trop large.
  My pants (this pair) are too big/loose.
• Mon jean est trop large.
  My jeans (this denim pair) are too big/loose.
• Mes pantalons sont trop larges.
  My pants (several pairs) are too big/loose.

Could I say Ce pantalon est trop large instead of Mon pantalon est trop large?

Yes, but the meaning changes slightly:

• Mon pantalon est trop large.
  My pants are too big/loose.
• Ce pantalon est trop large.
  This / that pair of pants is too big/loose.

Use ce when you’re pointing at or referring to a specific item in front of you or already known in context, without emphasizing possession.

How would I say “My pants are too big for me” in French?

You can extend the original sentence:

• Mon pantalon est trop large pour moi.
  = My pants are too big (too loose) for me.

If you want to emphasize size more generally, not just width/looseness:

• Mon pantalon est trop grand pour moi.
  = My pants are too big for me. (overall size)