"A cat is black."

Translation: Un chat est noir.

[tjleeau]

why not "noire"?

[ferynn]

The adjective accords in gender and number. Here, cat is masculine (un chat) so it's "noir".

[Goldentwig]

I get confused of when to use "est"

[ferynn]

"est" in this case is the translation of the verb "to be" accorded with "he"
He is = Il est

[once.marigold]

Same w/ me

[soyawe]

I got problem with gender of the nouns

[tsKiitos]

i think we all do buddy

[pkuwalker]

Are you an Asian?

[soyawe]

yes, and you?

[pkuwalker]

I'm from China. Most Europeans get along with gender of nouns. Maybe it is common in their languages

[soyawe]

I'm from China either, LOL

[Ellamac8]

i agree "the cat is black" is much better then "a cat is black"

[Babyanimals]

I think so too.

[parikshit.ag]

un chat noir? what's wrong

[Wunel]

Needs an "est" before noir.

[wongni]

un chat noir = a black cat.
un chat est noir = a cat is black.

[bday1990]

I'm sorry I still understand why it's "est" and not "es," or rather what the difference in the usage is?

[wongni]

I am = Je suis, He/She is = Il/Elle est, You are = Tu es

[quack17]

I don't get this!!! How do you know if the cat is masculine???

[Wunel]

You can hear it. une vs un and chat vs chatte. Go to Google Translate and listen to those words there, you will hear the difference.

[Babyanimals]

I don't earthier!

[daddysexbang]

Why are cats masculine, but apples and such are feminine?

[Wunel]

Cats are not masculine. Chat is a male cat, chatte is a female cat. Apples do not have an inherent gender and so they are assigned one in French just like all nouns, apple just happens to be feminine.

[Madystar4]

How do I tell, when its like a cat or animal, what to use; une, or un?

[Wunel]

I believe when it is an animal you can tell by what gender you are given for the animal. If it says chatte then use une, if it's chat then use un. The same principle applies to all animals, if you have the female animal use une and use un for the male animal.

If you are unsure then stick with the masculine.

[frenchlearner54]

why is chat masculine

[Wunel]

Because it is the male cat, chatte is the female cat and is feminine.

[frenchlearner54]

THANK YOU
I LOVE YOU SO MUCH
THANK YOU
THANK YOU
THANK YOU

[Wunel]

...You're welcome.

[SpragueC]

what is the diffrence of un and une they are both one

[Wunel]

Un is for a masculine noun, une for a feminine. Un chat, a male cat, and une chatte, a female cat.