Cette étiquette rouge indique que le carton est fragile.

to be

Breakdown of Cette étiquette rouge indique que le carton est fragile.

• rouge: red
• cette: this
• que: that

Questions & Answers about Cette étiquette rouge indique que le carton est fragile.

Why does the sentence start with cette? What does it mean?

Cette means this.

It is the feminine singular form of the demonstrative adjective:

• ce = this/that before most masculine singular nouns
• cet = this/that before a masculine singular noun starting with a vowel or silent h
• cette = this/that before a feminine singular noun
• ces = these/those for plural nouns

Here, étiquette is a feminine singular noun, so French uses cette:

• cette étiquette = this label

French demonstratives can mean either this or that depending on context.

Why is it cette étiquette and not cet étiquette?

Because étiquette is feminine, and cet is only used with masculine singular nouns before a vowel or silent h.

So:

• cet arbre = this tree
• cet homme = this man
• cette étiquette = this label

Even though étiquette begins with a vowel, its gender is still feminine, so cette is the correct form.

Why is rouge placed after ?