What does des plus mean in French?

It means extremely, or about as … as they come. Ce dossier est des plus urgents says the file is at the very top of the urgency scale. The nearest everyday equivalent is très, but des plus is stronger and much more formal.

Why is the adjective plural after des plus?

Because the phrase is a shortened parmi les plus, among the most, and the adjective still agrees with that unstated group. Ce roman est des plus captivants is historically ce roman est parmi les romans les plus captivants, which is where the s comes from.

When does the adjective after des plus stay singular?

When there is no noun for it to agree with: impersonal il, the neutral ce or cela, an infinitive, or a whole clause. Il est des plus difficile de répondre and travailler ici est des plus pénible both keep the base form.

What's the difference between des plus and le plus?

Le plus ranks something inside a named group and needs an article: la ville la plus ancienne de France. Des plus simply asserts an extreme degree and takes no article and no complement, so de France could not be added to it.

Is des plus used in spoken French?

Rarely. It belongs to writing and to formal speech, where you meet it in press articles, reviews, and reports. In conversation the same idea comes out as très, vraiment, or extrêmement: la réunion a été très productive.

French grammar · Advanced

Des Plus + Adjective in French: Why the Adjective Goes Plural

Written by Camille Laurent, Lead French Curriculum Editor · Reviewed May 2026

Des plus, des moins, and des mieux turn an adjective into a strong superlative meaning extremely or about as … as they come. The surprise is the agreement: the adjective goes into the plural even when the subject is singular, because the phrase is a shortened form of parmi les plus, among the most.

Ce roman est des plus captivants.

This novel is extremely gripping.

What it is

Des plus is a compact way of saying that something belongs to the top of its category. It works like an intensifier — the closest English equivalents are extremely, decidedly, or as … as they come — but its grammar still remembers where it came from. Des plus intéressants is what is left of parmi les plus intéressants, among the most interesting ones, and the plural adjective is the trace of that missing group.

La négociation a été des plus difficiles. — The negotiation was extremely difficult.

How to spot it

You will recognise it by the mismatch: a singular subject followed by a plural adjective, with des plus sitting between them. Nothing else in French produces that pattern.

Ce dossier est des plus urgents. — This file is extremely urgent.
Cette solution est des plus simples. — This solution is extremely simple.
Son accueil a été des plus chaleureux. — His welcome was extremely warm.
Ces remarques sont des moins utiles. — These remarks are anything but useful.

The s of plus is pronounced here as a z before a vowel and as an s before a consonant, unlike the silent plus of an ordinary comparison.

Des Plus Adjective Quick Reference

Des plus, des moins, des mieux and their agreement

Situation	What the adjective does	Example
Masculine singular subject	masculine plural	Ce film est des plus réussis.
Feminine singular subject	feminine plural	Cette route est des plus dangereuses.
Plural subject	plural, as expected	Ces mesures sont des plus efficaces.
Impersonal il, ce, cela	stays masculine singular	Il est des plus difficile de choisir.
An infinitive as subject	stays masculine singular	Attendre ici est des plus pénible.
des moins	same rules, opposite meaning	Sa réponse est des moins claires.
des mieux + past participle	same rules, means extremely well	Ce texte est des mieux écrits.

Common Des Plus Adjective Examples in French

The construction across the situations where the agreement changes:

Masculine Subjects

Ce quartier est des plus agréables.: This neighbourhood is extremely pleasant.
Le débat a été des plus animés.: The debate was extremely lively.
Son témoignage était des plus troublants.: His testimony was deeply disturbing.
Un accueil des plus chaleureux nous attendait.: An extremely warm welcome awaited us.

The last example shows the phrase attached directly to a noun rather than sitting after être, which is equally standard.

Feminine Subjects

Cette décision est des plus contestables.: This decision is highly questionable.
La situation reste des plus incertaines.: The situation remains extremely uncertain.
Une explication des plus confuses a suivi.: An extremely confused explanation followed.
Sa remarque était des plus déplacées.: Her remark was thoroughly out of place.

Gender comes from the subject, number comes from the construction, which is why you get a feminine plural on a singular noun.

When There Is No Noun to Agree With

Il est des plus difficile de répondre à cette question.: It is extremely difficult to answer this question.
C'est des plus étrange.: That's extremely odd.
Travailler dans ces conditions est des plus pénible.: Working in these conditions is extremely painful.
Cela paraît des plus improbable.: That seems extremely unlikely.

Impersonal il, ce, cela, and an infinitive all refer to a situation rather than a thing, so the adjective has nothing to copy and stays in its base form.

Des Moins and Des Mieux

Son argumentation était des moins convaincantes.: His argument was anything but convincing.
Ce logement est des moins confortables.: This flat is extremely uncomfortable.
Le rapport est des mieux documentés.: The report is extremely well documented.
Elle est des mieux informées sur le sujet.: She is extremely well informed on the subject.

Des moins does not mean slightly less; it is as absolute as des plus, pointing at the bottom of the scale rather than the top.

How Des Plus Works

One historical fact explains the plural, and everything else follows from what the subject happens to be.

The Plural Is a Fossil

The full form is parmi les plus intéressants, among the most interesting ones. French kept des plus and dropped the group, but the adjective still agrees with that invisible group, which is why it is plural. Once you see the missing words, the mismatch stops looking like an error.

Ce vin est des plus fins.

This wine is one of the finest.

des plus = parmi les plus.

Gender Comes From the Subject

The number is fixed by the construction, but the gender is not. A feminine subject produces a feminine plural adjective, so the ending combines information from two different sources.

Cette rencontre a été des plus fructueuses.

This meeting was extremely productive.

Feminine subject, feminine plural adjective.

No Noun Means No Agreement

When the subject is impersonal il, the neutral ce or cela, an infinitive, or a whole clause, there is no gender and no number available. The adjective then stays masculine singular, which is French's default when it has nothing to copy.

Il est des plus urgent de réagir.

It is extremely urgent to react.

No noun → base form.

It Is an Intensifier, Not a Comparison

Although it looks like a superlative, des plus never takes a complement. You cannot add de la ville or que les autres to it, because it is not ranking the thing against a stated group, only asserting that it is at the extreme.

Le voyage a été des plus fatigants.

The trip was exhausting.

No de and no que after it.

It Can Follow Être or a Noun

The usual home for the phrase is after être, paraître, sembler, or rester. It can also be tucked in after a noun as a compact modifier, where it behaves like any postposed adjective phrase.

Nous avons passé une soirée des plus agréables.

We spent an extremely pleasant evening.

After être, or straight after the noun.

Common Mistakes with Des Plus Adjective

Incorrect: Ce livre est des plus intéressant. — This book is extremely interesting.

Correct: Ce livre est des plus intéressants. — This book is extremely interesting.

The adjective agrees with the implied group in parmi les plus, not with the singular subject. A singular adjective here is the single most common error with this construction.

Incorrect: Cette route est des plus dangereux. — This road is extremely dangerous.

Correct: Cette route est des plus dangereuses. — This road is extremely dangerous.

The construction fixes the number but not the gender. Route is feminine, so the adjective has to be feminine plural, taking one piece of information from the subject and one from the phrase.

Incorrect: Il est des plus difficiles de choisir. — It is extremely difficult to choose.

Correct: Il est des plus difficile de choisir. — It is extremely difficult to choose.

This il is impersonal and refers to nothing, so there is no gender or number to copy and the adjective stays in its base form. Learners who have just mastered the plural tend to overcorrect here.

Incorrect: C'est des plus beaux films de l'année. — It's one of the finest films of the year.

Correct: C'est un des plus beaux films de l'année. — It's one of the finest films of the year.

One of the most in front of a noun is un or une plus an ordinary superlative. Des plus is an intensifier with no noun of its own and cannot be followed by a group introduced by de.

Des Moins, Des Mieux, and Where This Turns Up

The construction has two siblings and a fairly narrow habitat, both worth knowing before you use it.

The two variants

Des moins puts the thing at the bottom of the scale rather than the top, and des mieux is the version used with past participles, where mieux does the work bien would otherwise do.

Son intervention était des moins claires.: His contribution was anything but clear.
Le service y est des moins rapides.: The service there is extremely slow.
Ce dossier est des mieux préparés.: This file is extremely well prepared.
Ils sont des mieux placés pour en parler.: They are in the best position to speak about it.

Des moins is frequently ironic. Une explication des moins convaincantes usually means the speaker found it worthless.

This is a written and formal construction. You will meet it in journalism, reviews, reports, and careful speech, and almost never in casual conversation, where très or vraiment does the job.

La réunion a été des plus productives.: The meeting was extremely productive.
La réunion a été très productive.: The meeting was very productive.
Un été des plus secs a suivi.: An extremely dry summer followed.

Using des plus in a casual exchange is not wrong, but it will sound deliberately literary, in roughly the way most singular does in English.

The tolerated singular

Some modern writers make the adjective agree with the singular subject instead, treating des plus as a plain adverb. Dictionaries record the usage, but the plural remains the form expected in careful writing and in exams.

Ce livre est des plus intéressants.: This book is extremely interesting. (standard)
Cette tâche est des plus délicates.: This task is extremely delicate. (standard)

If in doubt, write the plural. It is never criticised, whereas the singular still is.

Des Plus Adjective FAQs

What does des plus mean in French?: It means extremely, or about as … as they come. Ce dossier est des plus urgents says the file is at the very top of the urgency scale. The nearest everyday equivalent is très, but des plus is stronger and much more formal.
Why is the adjective plural after des plus?: Because the phrase is a shortened parmi les plus, among the most, and the adjective still agrees with that unstated group. Ce roman est des plus captivants is historically ce roman est parmi les romans les plus captivants, which is where the s comes from.
When does the adjective after des plus stay singular?: When there is no noun for it to agree with: impersonal il, the neutral ce or cela, an infinitive, or a whole clause. Il est des plus difficile de répondre and travailler ici est des plus pénible both keep the base form.
What's the difference between des plus and le plus?: Le plus ranks something inside a named group and needs an article: la ville la plus ancienne de France. Des plus simply asserts an extreme degree and takes no article and no complement, so de France could not be added to it.
Is des plus used in spoken French?: Rarely. It belongs to writing and to formal speech, where you meet it in press articles, reviews, and reports. In conversation the same idea comes out as très, vraiment, or extrêmement: la réunion a été très productive.