In this grammar lesson you will learn about tout vs tous, how to use them, and their variations.
In this lesson you will learn about:
- tout and all their variations
- tout/tous/toute/toutes as an adjective
- tous and toutes as a pronoun
- tout as an adverb
- how to pronounce them
- how the terms are used in French sentences
- how to quiz yourself on tout vs tous, how to use them, and their variations
- how to practice with flashcards for tout vs tous, how to use them, and their variations
- how and why you should use the courses of Language Atlas to learn French
Please refer to the French A2 Curriculum to get a better overview of French grammar, if you are curious about how this fits in A2 grammar.
By the end of the lesson you will know all about tout vs tous, how to use them, and their variations!
Table of Contents
Tout and all its variations
| Masculine | Feminine | |
| Singular | tout | toute |
| Plural | tous | toutes |
Tout/Tous/Toute/Toutes as an Adjective
Tout means “all”, “every”, or sometimes even “whole”, when it modifies nouns.
It will be used in the following way:
- tout/tous/toute/toutes + article + noun
It has to agree in gender and in numer with the noun that follows.
Tout le temps, je pense à toi.
All of the time, I think of you.
J’ai tous les jouets.
I have all of the toys.
Ils ont mangé toute la pizza.
They ate the whole pizza.
Toutes les filles sont présentes.
All the girls are present.
Please note that tous is always pronounced with a silent -s, when it is used as an adjective.
Tous and Toutes as a Pronoun
Tout and toutes can replace nouns that have already been mentioned.
They must agree in gender and always are plural.
Les filles sont là et elles sont toutes prêtes.
The girls are here and they are all ready.
Les lions avaient faim, alors ils ont tous commencé à manger.
The lions were hungry, so they all started eating.
Les hommes sont rentrés chez eux le lundi, et ils sont tous arrivés le mardi.
The men travelled home on Monday, and they all arrived home on Tuesday.
As you can see in the sentences, rather than repeating the nouns (the girls/lions/men), you will just use tous/toutes.
This way, you can replace nouns that have already been mentioned.
The last sentence is a compound tense (the passé composé).
In compound tenses, tous/toutes will be placed like this:
- auxiliary verb + tous/toutes + past participle
Please note that tous is always pronounced with the -s, when it is used as a pronoun.
Tout as an Adverb
Tout can be used as an adverb meaning “all”, “completely”, and “very”.
When used as an adverb, tout is going to agree in gender only.
But tout will become toute in front of feminine adjectives that start with a consonant, or a spoken h.
Mon téléphone portable est tout neuf.
My mobile phone is completely new.
Jean est tout heureux de voir Paul.
Jean is very happy to see Paul.
Je suis tout triste de vous voir faire cela.
I am very sad to see you do this.
Pronunciation Tips
You have learnt a lot of things in this lesson.
It’s alright if things are still a bit fuzzy.
Here’s a quick summary on how to pronounce the -s in tous and toutes.
| -s is not pronounced | -s is pronounced | |
| tous | as an adjective | as a pronoun |
| toutes | always | – |
The pronunciation of the -s in tous depends on whether it’s an adjective or a pronoun.
As a an adjective it will NOT be pronounced. As a pronoun it will be pronounced.
However, toutes will never have the -s pronounced.
Sentences Overview of Tout vs Tous, How to use them, and their Variations
The final section of this lesson on tout vs tous, how to use them, and their variations is about seeing terms in action.
This is valuable because you can improve your understanding on tout vs tous, how to use them, and their variations through examples.
Here’s an overview of all the sentences of the previous chapter, neatly stored in one area.
Tout le temps, je pense à toi.
All of the time, I think of you.
J’ai tous les jouets.
I have all of the toys.
Ils ont mangé toute la pizza.
They ate the whole pizza.
Toutes les filles sont présentes.
All the girls are present.
Les filles sont là et elles sont toutes prêtes.
The girls are here and they are all ready.
Les lions avaient faim, alors ils ont tous commencé à manger.
The lions were hungry, so they all started eating.
Les hommes sont rentrés chez eux le lundi, et ils sont tous arrivés le mardi.
The men travelled home on Monday, and they all arrived home on Tuesday.
Mon téléphone portable est tout neuf.
My mobile phone is completely new.
Jean est tout heureux de voir Paul.
Jean is very happy to see Paul.
Je suis tout triste de vous voir faire cela.
I am very sad to see you do this.
Quiz Yourself on Tout vs Tous, How to use them, and their Variations
At the end of every lesson you can do a small quiz.
You will see the sentences of the previous chapter.
You will either need to fill in the blanks, choose the correct multiple choice option, or both.
It is up to you to give the correct answer.
Once you are done the correct answer will be shown.
You can redo the quiz as many times as you want.
How to Practice With Flashcards for This Lesson
Using flashcards is an absolute necessity when it comes to learning a language!
It is the best way to memorize what you learn, you can personalize your progression because it adapts to your actions, and all flashcards have audio to improve your hearing and pronunciation.
Please read our article on how to learn a new language for more information on flashcards and the best way to learn a new language.
There are two ways to practice with Flashcards for this lesson.
- Anki
- The Flashcards in our Courses
Anki is a free software with which you can create and practice flashcards.
After you have downloaded Anki, you can get our French A2 Anki Deck.
This Anki Deck contains 3,816 flashcards with which you can practice absolutely everything for French A2.
All the flashcards have text, images, explanations, and audio.
You can also use our courses that have flashcards integrated alongside lessons with audio, quizzes and much more!
However, I am sure you are wondering, what are your courses, and why should I take them?
The Courses of Language Atlas
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