Indefinite Determiners

Rule 1: French indefinite determiners (les déterminants indéfinis or les adjectifs indéfinis) function as adjectives that modify the noun. They always come directly before the noun.

Some of them are variable, like aucun, tout, or quelque - which means they have to agree with the noun. Others are invariable and never change, such as chaque or plusieurs.

Aucun, Aucune

Rule 2: The form of the indefinite determiner aucun is based on the gender of the corresponding noun. It’s accompanied by the negation ne and can be translated as "no" or "none."

Most often, aucun is used in its singular form - unless it is followed by a noun that doesn’t have a singular or is used in the plural.

Autre, Autres

Rule 3: Autre can refer to either a person or a thing. It can be used in either plural or singular form and means "other."

Certain, Certaine, Certains, Certaines

Rule 4: Certain agrees in number and gender to the noun it’s referring to. It can be translated to "certain" or "some."

In the singular form, an indefinite article un or une is used before certain and certaine.

Quelque, Quelques

Rule 5: Quelque agrees with the noun in number. It’s mostly used in the plural and can be translated as "some" or "few."

Plusieurs

Rule 6: Plusieurs is invariable and always comes before a plural noun. It can be translated as "several."

Difference Between Quelques and Plusieurs:

Rule 7: Quelques is the antonym of beaucoup, and it literally means "few" or "a few," while plusieurs focuses on the idea of "more than one."

Chaque

Rule 8: Chaque is invariable and always comes before a singular noun. It can be translated as "every."

Tout, Toute, Tous, Toutes

Rule 9: The form of tout changes according to the gender and number of the noun(s) it refers to.

Rule 10: The determiner tout always has a second determiner (le, ma, ses, votre, ...)

Rule 11: The meaning of this determiner in the singular or the plural is not exactly the same:

- Singular: "all" / "whole"

- Plural: "all" / "every"

Exception: Tout le Monde

Tout le monde usually means "everyone," "everybody" and refers to a set of people (not of things).

It’s never used to say "the whole world", which would be "le monde entier".

Interrogative Determiners : Quel, Quelle, Quels, Quelles

Rule 12: Interrogative determiners always come before a noun. They are used when you want to ask "which" or "what." Their gender and number are based on the corresponding noun.