determinerpronoun

ces

these

C'est un mot utilisé pour parler de plusieurs choses ou personnes proches de celui qui parle.

Definition & meaning

The word ces is a demonstrative adjective in French. It is used to point out or identify specific people, animals, or objects that are being discussed or are physically present. It is the plural form for both masculine and feminine nouns.

In English, ces translates to:

These: When referring to things close to the speaker.
Those: When referring to things further away or previously mentioned.

To specifically distinguish between "these" and "those," French speakers sometimes add the suffixes -ci (here) or -là (there) to the noun following the adjective, such as in ces livres-ci (these books) or ces livres-là (those books).

Grammar & Word origin

Grammar: ces is a plural determiner. It must always be followed by a plural noun. Unlike the singular forms, ces does not change based on gender; it is used for both masculine plural nouns (e.g., ces hommes) and feminine plural nouns (e.g., ces femmes).

When the word following ces begins with a vowel or a silent 'h', a liaison is made, pronouncing the final 's' as a /z/ sound (e.g., ces enfants is pronounced /se zɑ̃fɑ̃/).

Word origin: The word descends from the Old French ces, which evolved from the Vulgar Latin ecce (behold) combined with the Latin demonstrative iste (that). Over centuries, these demonstrative forms simplified into the modern French system of ce, cette, and ces.

Synonyms & antonyms

Synonyms: Because ces is a grammatical tool (a determiner), it does not have true synonyms in the way a noun or verb does. however, related words include:

Les (the): Used as a general plural definite article when the specific demonstrative "pointing" is not necessary.
De tels (such): Used to describe "these types of" things.

Antonyms: There is no direct opposite to a demonstrative adjective, but it can be contrasted with:

Des (some/any): The plural indefinite article, used when referring to non-specific items rather than specific ones pointed out by ces.
Ses (his/her/its): Often confused phonetically with ces, this possessive adjective indicates ownership rather than just pointing something out.