4 practice makes perfect French Vocabulary
Whenever the feminine counterpart of a noun diff ers from this pattern in a vocabulary list, the
feminine form is also provided.le conducteur the driver (male)
la conductrice the driver (female)Most French nouns end in -s in the plural form (pl.) and are preceded by a plural article such
as les, des, or ces.les/des/ces facteurs the/some/these mail carriersLes étapes de la vie (The stages of life)
Every person’s life evolves in unique but similar stages and is marked by notable moments. French
people have a realistic attitude toward life, enjoying happy times (les bons moments) as well as
being stoic in bad times (les mauvais moments).l’adolescence (f.) adolescence
l’âge de raison (m.) grown-up age
l’âge mûr (m.) middle age
le bas-âge infancy
l’enfance childhood
la jeunesse youth
la maturité maturity
la mort death
la naissance birth
le troisième âge senior, older ageL’adolescence est souvent une période Adolescence is oft en a period of insecurity.
d’insécurité.
Une fois qu’on a soixante ans, on passe Once you reach the age of sixty, you become a
au troisième âge. senior.La vie conjugale (Married life)
Although unmarried couples living together are not uncommon in France, marriage plays a sig-
nifi cant role in the lives of many couples. A civil marriage is necessary and suffi cient in the eyes
of the law, but it is oft en accompanied by a religious ceremony.l’anniversaire de mariage (m.) wedding anniversary
le concubinage cohabitation
le divorce divorce
les fi ançailles (f. pl.) engagement
la grossesse pregnancy
la lune de miel honeymoon
les noces (d’argent, d’or, de diamant) (silver, gold, diamond) anniversary
la publication des bans public announcement (of marriage)
les rapports intimes (m. pl.) intimacy
la rupture breakup
la séparation separation
le second mariage second marriage
l’union civile (f.) civil union