Masculin ou Féminin

Taylor M.B1Kwiziq community member

Masculin ou Féminin

The question asked to clarify if son was masculin or feminin reflecting "Le professeur." The answer was "cannot say" but why isn't it masculin? Can't professeur be feminin by adding an "e" at the end? 

Asked 3 years ago
CécileNative French expert teacher in KwiziqCorrect answer

Hi Taylor, 

The only relevant Kwiz question I found is -

Le professeur parle à son élève 

is the pupil  a boy or a girl ?

The answer is 'you cannot say'  as it could be either.

As to the gender of the noun, 'professeur' Maarten answered correctly.

Hope this helps!

Maarten K.C1 Kwiziq Q&A super contributor

La professeure is a female teacher - although this form is still considered a neologism by the academie-française, it is in use.

However, un/le professeur - grammatically masculine noun - can refer to either male or female teacher and 'son professeur' also refers to either a male or female teacher.

Job titles differ in French depending on whether you're a man or a woman (nouns)

Masculin ou Féminin

The question asked to clarify if son was masculin or feminin reflecting "Le professeur." The answer was "cannot say" but why isn't it masculin? Can't professeur be feminin by adding an "e" at the end? 

Sign in to submit your answer

Don't have an account yet? Join today

Ask a question

Find your French level for FREE

Test your French to the CEFR standard

Find your French level
Clever stuff happening!