Learn Hardcore French: Ce village est très silencieux la nuit.

ce is used before a masculine singular noun that starts with a consonant sound:
- ce village
- ce garçon
cet is used before a masculine singular noun that starts with a vowel or mute h:
- cet arbre
- cet homme
- cet hôtel

Village starts with the consonant sound v, so you must use ce village, not cet village.

What is the difference between Ce village est très silencieux and C’est un village très silencieux?

Both are correct, but the structure and emphasis are slightly different:

Ce village est très silencieux.
- Literally: This village is very quiet/silent.
- The subject is ce village, and très silencieux is a complement describing it.
C’est un village très silencieux.
- Literally: It is a very quiet village. / This is a very quiet village.
- The subject is the pronoun ce
  - être, followed by a noun phrase (un village très silencieux).

In practice:

Use Ce village est… when you already know which village you’re talking about, and you are just describing it.
Use C’est un village… more to introduce or classify: It’s a (kind of) village that is very quiet.

Why is silencieux masculine and not silencieuse?

Adjectives in French must agree in gender and number with the noun they describe.

Village is a masculine singular noun: un village.
Therefore the adjective must also be masculine singular: silencieux.

Forms of this adjective:

Masculine singular: silencieux
Feminine singular: silencieuse
Masculine plural: silencieux (same spelling as singular)
Feminine plural: silencieuses

Examples:

Ce village est silencieux. (masc. sing.)
Cette ville est silencieuse. (fem. sing.)
Ces villages sont silencieux. (masc. pl.)
Ces rues sont silencieuses. (fem. pl.)

What is the nuance of silencieux compared to calme or tranquille?

All three can be translated as quiet, but they are not identical:

silencieux: focuses on silence, almost no sound.
- Ce village est très silencieux la nuit. = Very little noise at night.
calme: more about calmness and absence of agitation (can be physical or emotional).
- Le village est calme aujourd’hui. = People aren’t agitated; atmosphere is peaceful.
tranquille: suggests peaceful, undisturbed, not bothered.
- C’est un village tranquille. = It’s a peaceful, uneventful village.

In your sentence, silencieux emphasizes the lack of noise, which fits well with la nuit.

Why is la nuit at the end? Can I move it to the beginning?

Yes, you can move la nuit to the beginning:

Ce village est très silencieux la nuit.
La nuit, ce village est très silencieux.

Both are correct. The difference is just in emphasis and style:

End position (…silencieux la nuit) is very common and neutral.
Beginning position (La nuit, …) slightly emphasizes the time: At night, this village is very quiet.

You cannot say Ce village la nuit est très silencieux in standard French; the time expression doesn’t normally go between the subject and the verb like that.

Why is there no preposition like at before la nuit? Why not à la nuit?

In French, general time expressions often use a definite article without a preposition, where English uses at / in / on:

le matin = in the morning
l’après-midi = in the afternoon
le soir = in the evening
la nuit = at night

So:

Ce village est très silencieux la nuit. = This village is very quiet at night.

You would not say à la nuit here. À la nuit is rare and would sound strange or old‑fashioned in this context.

For other nuances, French uses different structures:

la nuit = at night (in general)
dans la nuit = in the night / during the night (within that period)
pendant la nuit = during the night

Why do we use the present tense est? Could we use another tense?

The present tense est (from être) is used here to express a general, habitual fact:

Ce village est très silencieux la nuit.
= This village is (generally) very quiet at night.

You could use other tenses depending on meaning:

Ce village était très silencieux la nuit.
= The village used to be / was very quiet at night (in the past).
Ce village sera très silencieux la nuit.
= The village will be very quiet at night (future).
Ce village est très silencieux cette nuit.
= This village is very quiet tonight (specific night).

What does très add, and can I replace it with something else?

Très means very and intensifies the adjective:

silencieux = quiet / silent
très silencieux = very quiet / very silent

You can replace très with other intensifiers, with slightly different levels of emphasis or style:

vraiment silencieux = really quiet
tellement silencieux = so quiet
particulièrement silencieux = particularly quiet
extrêmement silencieux = extremely quiet

Note: You cannot use beaucoup with an adjective:

❌ beaucoup silencieux is wrong.
✅ très silencieux is correct.

Is village always masculine in French? How do I know its gender?

Yes, village is always masculine in French:

un village, le village, ce village, mon village

Unfortunately, the gender of many nouns in French is not fully predictable and must be learned with the word. However, some endings have tendencies:

Nouns ending in -age are usually masculine:
- un village, un garage, un voyage, un fromage
  (There are a few exceptions, but they are rare.)

A good habit: when you learn village, always learn it with its article: un village (masculine).

How is the sentence pronounced? Are there any liaisons?

Approximate pronunciation (in IPA):

Ce → /sə/
village → /vi.laʒ/
est → /ɛ/
très → /tʁɛ/
silencieux → /si.lɑ̃.sjø/
la → /la/
nuit → /nɥi/

Full sentence:
Ce village est très silencieux la nuit.
/ sə vi.laʒ ɛ tʁɛ si.lɑ̃.sjø la nɥi /

Notes:

No liaison between village and est: the final -e of village is silent.
Est très: the t of est is not pronounced; you only hear the t of très.
nuit has the French [ɥ] sound, similar to saying “nwee” in English but shorter and more blended: nɥi.

What is the difference between ce village and ce village-ci / ce village-là?

All three contain ce, meaning this / that, but:

ce village = this/that village (context decides which)
ce village-ci = this village (here) – more precise, emphasizes nearness
ce village-là = that village (there) – emphasizes distance

Examples:

Ce village est très silencieux la nuit. = This/that village is very quiet at night.
Ce village-ci est très silencieux la nuit, mais ce village-là est très animé.
= This village (here) is very quiet at night, but that village (there) is very lively.

Could I use ville instead of village in this sentence?

Grammatically, yes:

Cette ville est très silencieuse la nuit.

Changes:

ville is feminine, so:
- cette instead of ce
- silencieuse instead of silencieux

Meaning difference:

village: smaller, rural place.
ville: town or city, generally larger and more urban.

So your original sentence specifically describes a small town / village, not a city.