Welcome to Unit 2! You've already mastered greetings, politeness, and numbers — now it's time to meet the family. In this lesson you'll learn the essential French words for your closest relatives. French uses different articles for masculine and feminine nouns, and family vocabulary is a perfect place to practise that. Camille is going to share a family photo with Lucas, so listen in and pick up the vocabulary naturally.
Learning tips
- Notice that most family members come in masculine/feminine pairs: le frère / la sœur, le fils / la fille, le grand-père / la grand-mère. Learning them together doubles your vocabulary at no extra cost.
- The article (le, la, les) is part of every French noun — try to memorise each word WITH its article from the start.
- The word 'les parents' in French means 'parents', but it can also mean 'relatives' in a broader sense. Context will tell you which meaning is intended.
- When a noun starts with a vowel or silent h, le/la contracts to l' — as in l'animal. You'll practise this in the grammar section.
Warm-up & Active Recall
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| de rien | you're welcome / don't mention it |
| pardon | sorry / pardon (excuse me) |
| excusez-moi | excuse me (formal) |
| s'il te plaît | please (informal) |
| je suis désolé | I'm sorry |
| comment | how |
| non | no |
| vous | you (formal/plural) |
| on | one / we (informal) |
| la personne | the person |
Dialog
Camille shows Lucas a family photo during a break. She introduces her parents, siblings, and grandparents. Pay attention to how she uses mon (my, masc.) and ma (my, fem.) with each family member.
Vocabulary
Active words
| Word | IPA | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| la famille | /la fa.mij/ | the family | Core word — la famille is always feminine. |
| la maman | /la ma.mɑ̃/ | mum / mom | Informal word for mother — very common in everyday speech. |
| le papa | /lə pa.pa/ | dad | Informal word for father — used in everyday conversation. |
| le frère | /lə fʁɛʁ/ | the brother | Masculine noun. Plural: les frères. |
| la sœur | /la sœʁ/ | the sister | Feminine noun. Plural: les sœurs. The œ vowel is unique to French. |
| le fils | /lə fis/ | the son | The final s is silent: pronounced /fis/, not /fils/. |
| la fille | /la fij/ | the daughter / the girl | Fille means both 'daughter' and 'girl' depending on context. |
| le grand-père | /lə ɡʁɑ̃.pɛʁ/ | the grandfather | Hyphenated compound word. Plural: les grands-pères. |
| la grand-mère | /la ɡʁɑ̃.mɛʁ/ | the grandmother | Hyphenated compound word. Plural: les grands-mères. |
| les parents | /le pa.ʁɑ̃/ | the parents | Always plural. Note the silent final t: /pa.ʁɑ̃/. |
Passive words
| Word | IPA | Translation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| le bébé | /lə be.be/ | ||
| les jumeaux | /le ʒy.mo/ | ||
| l' l'animal | /la.ni.mal/ | ||
| le chien | /lə ʃjɛ̃/ | ||
| le chat | /lə ʃa/ | ||
| la photo | /la fɔ.to/ |
Useful chunks
| Word | Translation |
|---|---|
| c'est ma famille | this is my family / it's my family |
| les grands-parents | the grandparents |
Grammar: Definite articles with family members and plural formation
| Article | Usage | Exemple |
|---|---|---|
| le | masculin singulier | le frère |
| la | féminin singulier | la sœur |
| l' | devant voyelle/h muet | l'animal |
| les | pluriel (m et f) | les parents |
In French, every noun has a grammatical gender — masculine (m.) or feminine (f.) — and this affects the article you use in front of it. The definite article ('the' in English) has four forms in French: 'le' for masculine singular nouns (le frère, le fils), 'la' for feminine singular nouns (la sœur, la famille), 'l'' when the noun starts with a vowel or silent h — regardless of gender (l'animal, l'oncle), and 'les' for all plural nouns, both masculine and feminine (les parents, les frères, les sœurs). There is no change to the plural article based on gender — 'les' covers everything. To make a noun plural, you usually add a silent -s to the end, just as in English writing (le frère → les frères). The article changes, but the pronunciation of the noun itself often stays the same. A key point: when you learn a new French noun, always learn its article at the same time. Saying 'le frère' and 'la sœur' together trains you to associate gender automatically. The gender of French nouns is largely unpredictable for English speakers — it must be memorised, not guessed.
Exercises
Fill in the Blanks
Complete each sentence with the correct French word or phrase.
- C'est ma et mon . (mother and father)(informal words for mother and father)
- J'ai un et une . (brother and sister)(sibling pair: one masculine, one feminine)
- Voilà mon et ma . (grandfather and grandmother)(grandparent pair: grandfather then grandmother)
- C'est une grande !(the word that means 'family')
- parents habitent à Paris.(which article goes before 'parents'? — think plural)
Grammar Application
Choose the correct definite article (le, la, l', or les) for each noun.
- Quel article ? frère (masculin)(masculine singular noun)
- Quel article ? sœur (féminin)(feminine singular noun)
- Quel article ? animal (voyelle)(starts with a vowel — use the elided form)
- Pluriel de « le frère » → frères(all plural nouns use the same article)
- Pluriel de « la sœur » → sœurs(all plural nouns use the same article)
Translate into French
Translate each English sentence into French.
- This is my family.
- I have a brother and a sister.
- There is my grandfather.
- The parents live in Paris.
- That's my son.
Build Your Own Sentence
Write 2–3 French sentences about your own family (real or imaginary). Use at least four family words from this lesson and include the correct articles.
Takeaway
Every French noun carries a gender — always learn 'le frère' and 'la sœur', not just 'frère' and 'sœur', and the articles will become second nature.