Grammatical gender classifies nouns as masculine or feminine and governs the agreement of the words that accompany them. It does not always correspond to real sex, because it stems from a lexical property of the noun. It is first recognized by the article, then by the agreement of the determiner and the adjective in the noun phrase.

The definite article and the indefinite article agree with the gender of the noun, and this marker helps identify the noun in the sentence. The definite and indefinite articles belong to the same system as [Defined Articles] and [Indefinite Articles], where gender appears at the start of the noun phrase. The partitive article follows the same logic for mass nouns or uncountable nouns, as seen with [Partitive Article].

IdéeIdea.	ExempleExample.
Le masculin singulier prend le ou un.The masculine singular takes le or un.	le livreThe book.
Le féminin singulier prend la ou une.The feminine singular takes la or une.	la tableThe table.
Le pluriel garde le genre mais change l’article.The plural preserves the gender but changes the article.	les livresThe books.

In the noun phrase, the determiner, the noun, and the adjective agree together in gender, then in number. This agreement is visible with [Adjective agreement] and with the [Qualifying adjectives], which often take a different form depending on the noun they qualify. The noun itself does not always change, but it imposes its form on the surrounding words.

IdéeIdea.	ExempleExample.
Le masculin singulier appelle la forme masculine de l’adjectif.The masculine singular requires the masculine form of the adjective.	un grand jardinA large garden.
Le féminin singulier appelle la forme féminine de l’adjectif.The feminine singular requires the feminine form of the adjective.	une grande maisonA large house.
Le pluriel fait varier le déterminant et l’adjectif.The plural causes the determiner and the adjective to vary.	de grandes maisonsLarge houses.

Many feminine nouns end in -e, but this ending is not an absolute rule. Some endings strongly influence gender, which helps quickly recognize the word before verification. For common nouns, these cues are very useful, while [Proper Nouns] follow mainly established usage.

IdéeIdea.	ExempleExample.
La finale e indique souvent le féminin.The ending -e often indicates the feminine.	la porteThe door.
Des finales comme age signalent souvent le masculin.Endings such as -age often signal masculine.	le voyageThe journey.
Des finales comme tion signalent souvent le féminin.Endings such as -tion often signal feminine.	la nationThe nation.

The gender must sometimes be memorized, because some nouns do not follow morphological regularities. Epicene words like élève keep the same form, but the article and the pronouns change according to the person or the context. Other nouns, notably borrowings or abstractions, have a gender fixed by usage, sometimes with regional or historical variations.

IdéeIdea.	ExempleExample.
Un nom épicène garde la même forme pour les deux genres.An epicene noun keeps the same form for both genders.	un élèveA student.
Un emprunt peut avoir un genre fixé par l’usage.A loanword may have a gender fixed by usage.	le week-endThe weekend.
Un nom abstrait conserve souvent un genre stable.An abstract noun often preserves a stable gender.	la libertéFreedom.

Names of people can have a masculine form and a feminine form, such as actor and actress, or present a newer feminization depending on the register. This evolution also affects certain professions and titles, where usage may vary according to the norm, the social context, and the Francophone region. The gender of the noun then determines the agreement of the determiner and the adjective in groups like those of [Common Nouns].

IdéeIdea.	ExempleExample.
Le masculin et le féminin peuvent former deux noms distincts.The masculine and the feminine can form two distinct nouns.	un acteurAn actor.
La féminisation crée une forme féminine reconnue.Feminization creates a recognized feminine form.	une actriceAn actress.
Certains métiers varient selon le registre.Some professions vary by register.	une autriceA female author.

The gender of compound nouns is often determined by the first element, but usage can fix other analyses depending on the word. Consultation of [Compound Nouns] helps identify these cases, because the composition can mask the grammatical core. In several constructions, the first noun also imposes the agreement of the related words.

IdéeIdea.	ExempleExample.
Le premier élément peut fixer le genre.The first element can determine the gender.	un porte monnaieA wallet.
L’usage peut stabiliser un genre particulier.Usage can stabilize a particular gender.	une demi heureHalf an hour.
Le noyau du composé guide l’accord local.The head of the compound guides the agreement of the surrounding words.	des belles belles chosesSome beautiful, beautiful things.

To recognize the gender, one must memorize the article with the noun, observe common endings, and check doubtful words in a dictionary. This method is particularly useful with [Collective Nouns], loanwords, rare forms, and gender-variant nouns. With practice, nominal gender becomes an immediate reference for choosing the correct agreement in the sentence.