NOUNS

used; if the speaker wants to focus on the action carried out by the members of the
group, the plural is used.

NOUNS
1.1.4 Simple nouns and compound nouns
Nouns are either simple or compound:
Simple nouns consist of one word: arbre (tree), agriculteur (farmer), engrais (fertiliser)
Compound nouns may be written as:
 one word
gentilhomme ( = gentil + homme) (archaic) gentleman
passeport (= passe + port) passport
 two words that are juxtaposed
État membre Member state
cas limite borderline case
 two words separated by a hyphen
sourd-muet deaf mute
après-midi afternoon
 two words linked by a preposition, which may be hyphenated
pomme de terre potato
brosse à dents toothbrush
arc-en-ciel rainbow
tête-à-tête tête-à-tête

1.1.5 Gens
 The word gens is a mass noun which is found only in the plural form. You cannot say
*trois gens or *quelques gens; in these cases personnes has to be used instead: trois
personnes, quelques personnes.
Gens has to be used when referring to people collectively:
Aujourd’hui les gens ne croient plus à rien. People don’t believe in anything these days.
 Gens may be preceded by beaucoup / peu de, tous les … , tant de, la majorité des … and
certaines …
Il y avait tant de gens qu’on ne pouvait pas There were so many people that you couldn’t
respirer. breathe.
Peu de gens visitent le monument. Few people visit the monument.