What are the indefinite articles in French?

Un for masculine singular nouns, une for feminine singular nouns, and des for all plurals: un stylo, une feuille, des ciseaux. Un and une translate a or an; des has no direct English equivalent and is often left untranslated.

What does des mean in French?

It's the plural of un and une, so des livres means books or some books. English usually says nothing at all there, which is exactly why learners drop it. Note that des is also de plus les, as in la couleur des murs, so the same spelling covers two jobs.

Why is it il est médecin and not il est un médecin?

Because after être a profession functions as a description, like an adjective, and French descriptions don't take articles. As soon as you switch to c'est, the noun is presented as a thing and the article returns: c'est un médecin.

Why does un become de after a negative?

Because the negative removes the quantity altogether, and de is the form French uses when no amount is being counted. Je n'ai pas de temps, il n'y a pas de solution. The only verb that resists this is être: ce n'est pas une solution.

When does des become de?

Three times: after a negative (pas de livres), after an expression of quantity (beaucoup de livres, un tas de livres), and in careful French when an adjective comes before a plural noun (de grandes maisons). Elsewhere it stays des.

French grammar · Beginner

Un, Une, Des: The French Indefinite Article

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

The French indefinite articles are un, une, and des. Un and une correspond to a and an; des is the plural, which English usually leaves out altogether. All three collapse to de after a negative and after any expression of quantity, and they disappear entirely in front of a profession after être.

J'ai acheté un livre, une carte et des cartes postales.

I bought a book, a map and some postcards.

What it is

An indefinite article introduces something the listener can't yet identify: a book, some friends. French has three forms because it marks gender in the singular and number in the plural, and it has one form English doesn't have at all. Des is the plural of un and une, and unlike English some, it can't be left out.

un ami, une amie, des amis — a friend, a friend, friends. The third one has no English article at all.

How to spot it

Ask two questions: does the listener already know which one you mean, and is anything in front of the noun that strips the article away. If the answer to both is no, you want un, une, or des.

Il y a un problème. — There's a problem.
J'ai vu une voiture rouge. — I saw a red car.
Elle a des idées. — She has ideas.
Je n'ai pas de questions. — I don't have any questions.

Un and une are also the number one, so un café means both a coffee and one coffee. Only context separates them.

Indefinite Article Quick Reference

Which form appears where

Context	Form	Example
Masculine singular	un	un livre — a book
Feminine singular	une	une table — a table
Plural, either gender	des	des amis — friends
After a negative	de	pas de livre — no book
Adjective before a plural noun	de	de vieux amis — old friends
After an expression of quantity	de	beaucoup de livres — lots of books
Profession after être	nothing	Il est avocat. — He's a lawyer.
After sans	nothing	sans voiture — without a car

Common Indefinite Article Examples in French

The article appearing, changing, and vanishing:

Introducing Something New

Un homme attend devant la porte.: A man is waiting outside the door.
J'ai reçu une lettre ce matin.: I got a letter this morning.
Il cherche un appartement à Lille.: He's looking for a flat in Lille.
C'est une très bonne question.: That's a very good question.

Once the thing has been mentioned, the next reference switches to the definite article: un homme… l'homme.

Des, the Plural With No English Equivalent

J'ai des amis à Toulouse.: I have friends in Toulouse.
Il y a des erreurs dans le texte.: There are mistakes in the text.
Elle a acheté des fleurs.: She bought flowers.
On a des choses à se dire.: We have things to talk about.

English can start a plural noun with nothing at all. French cannot: a bare plural noun after a verb reads as unfinished.

When It Turns Into De

Je n'ai pas de voiture.: I don't have a car.
Il n'y a plus de places.: There are no seats left.
Ce sont de vieux amis.: They're old friends.
J'ai beaucoup de travail.: I have a lot of work.

In all three situations the article is still doing its job; only its shape changes.

Un as the Number One

J'ai un frère et deux sœurs.: I have one brother and two sisters.
Il n'en reste qu'un.: There's only one left.
Un seul billet, s'il vous plaît.: Just one ticket, please.
une fois par semaine: once a week

To make the counting sense unambiguous, French adds seul or ne… qu'un rather than changing the article.

How the Indefinite Article Works

Five rules, and three of them are about the article changing shape rather than changing meaning.

It Agrees, and It Can't Be Omitted

Un goes with masculine nouns, une with feminine ones, and des with any plural. Because French requires a determiner in front of almost every noun, dropping des is not a stylistic choice, it's a gap.

Il y a un chat, une souris et des oiseaux dans le jardin.

There's a cat, a mouse and some birds in the garden.

un / une / des, always present.

A Negative Turns It Into De

After ne… pas, ne… plus, and ne… jamais, un, une, and des all reduce to de. The exception is être, which keeps the full article because it identifies rather than counts.

Ce n'est pas un problème, mais je n'ai pas de solution.

It's not a problem, but I don't have a solution.

pas de, except after être.

An Adjective in Front of a Plural Noun Also Gives De

When an adjective precedes a plural noun, careful French replaces des with de: de bons résultats, de petites erreurs. In speech des is extremely common here, but writing keeps the older form.

Elle a eu de bonnes notes ce trimestre.

She got good marks this term.

de + adjective + plural noun.

A Profession After Être Takes No Article At All

Être plus a job, a nationality, or a religion treats the word as a description rather than a thing, so no article appears. Switch to c'est and the noun becomes a thing again, and the article comes back.

Elle est architecte. C'est une architecte connue.

She's an architect. She's a well-known architect.

Il est médecin, c'est un médecin.

Un Is Also the Numeral

French never developed a separate word for one, so un and une carry both jobs. In writing, ambiguity is resolved by adding seul, and in speech by stressing the word.

J'ai un chien, pas deux.

I have one dog, not two.

un = a and one.

Common Mistakes with Indefinite Article

Incorrect: Je n'ai pas une voiture. — I don't have a car.

Correct: Je n'ai pas de voiture. — I don't have a car.

Un, une, and des all become de after a negative. Keeping une would suggest you're denying the number rather than the possession.

Incorrect: Ma mère est une infirmière. — My mother is a nurse.

Correct: Ma mère est infirmière. — My mother is a nurse.

After être, a profession is a description rather than a thing, so no article appears. With c'est the article comes back: c'est une infirmière.

Incorrect: J'ai acheté livres et cahiers. — I bought books and notebooks.

Correct: J'ai acheté des livres et des cahiers. — I bought books and notebooks.

English can start a plural with nothing; French can't. Des has to be repeated in front of each noun, too, since it can't be shared across a list.

Incorrect: Ce sont des bons résultats. — Those are good results.

Correct: Ce sont de bons résultats. — Those are good results.

When an adjective comes in front of a plural noun, careful French reduces des to de. You'll hear des constantly in speech, but writing still expects de.

Where French Drops the Article

French almost always requires a determiner, so the places it doesn't are worth listing. All of them treat the noun as a quality rather than as a thing.

Fixed verb and noun pairs

A set of very common expressions welds a verb to a bare noun. The noun has no article and can't take one.

J'ai faim et j'ai soif.: I'm hungry and thirsty.
Fais attention !: Be careful!
Elle a pris rendez-vous.: She made an appointment.
Nous avons besoin de temps.: We need time.

These behave as single units, which is why avoir une faim is only possible with an adjective: j'ai une faim de loup.

After sans, en tant que, comme, and ni… ni

These four introduce a role or an absence, so the noun after them is a description and needs no article.

Il est parti sans manteau.: He left without a coat.
en tant que responsable du projet: as the person in charge of the project
Elle travaille comme traductrice.: She works as a translator.
Je n'ai ni voiture ni permis.: I have neither a car nor a licence.

Sans keeps the article only when you mean a specific thing: il est parti sans le manteau que je lui avais prêté.

Saying what someone is

Être plus a profession, nationality, or religion takes no article. C'est plus the same noun does, because c'est presents it as a thing.

Mon père est boulanger.: My father is a baker.
Elle est italienne.: She's Italian.
C'est un excellent boulanger.: He's an excellent baker.
Il est devenu médecin.: He became a doctor.

The moment an adjective is attached, French switches to c'est plus the article: not il est bon boulanger but c'est un bon boulanger.

Indefinite Article FAQs

What are the indefinite articles in French?: Un for masculine singular nouns, une for feminine singular nouns, and des for all plurals: un stylo, une feuille, des ciseaux. Un and une translate a or an; des has no direct English equivalent and is often left untranslated.
What does des mean in French?: It's the plural of un and une, so des livres means books or some books. English usually says nothing at all there, which is exactly why learners drop it. Note that des is also de plus les, as in la couleur des murs, so the same spelling covers two jobs.
Why is it il est médecin and not il est un médecin?: Because after être a profession functions as a description, like an adjective, and French descriptions don't take articles. As soon as you switch to c'est, the noun is presented as a thing and the article returns: c'est un médecin.
Why does un become de after a negative?: Because the negative removes the quantity altogether, and de is the form French uses when no amount is being counted. Je n'ai pas de temps, il n'y a pas de solution. The only verb that resists this is être: ce n'est pas une solution.
When does des become de?: Three times: after a negative (pas de livres), after an expression of quantity (beaucoup de livres, un tas de livres), and in careful French when an adjective comes before a plural noun (de grandes maisons). Elsewhere it stays des.