gentilles

Gentilles is the feminine plural form of the French adjective gentil, meaning kind, nice, or courteous. It describes feminine plural nouns, for example des filles gentilles (kind girls) or des personnes gentilles (kind people). When used predicatively, it can appear in constructions like Cette femme est gentille.

Origin and forms: Gentil comes from Old French gentil, itself from Latin gentilis meaning of a clan or birth; over time it acquired senses of refinement and politeness. In modern French, gentil can denote courtesy or civility and, in historical contexts, noble birth. The feminine singular is gentille; the masculine plural is gentils; the feminine plural is gentilles. The adverbial form is gentiment.

Usage notes: Adjectives in French agree with the noun in gender and number, so gentilles accompanies feminine plural nouns. Position relative to the noun can affect nuance: both une femme gentille and une gentille femme are correct, with minor emphasis differences. Gentilles does not constitute a separate noun; it is simply the inflected form of gentil used with feminine plural subjects or objects. Common related forms include des filles gentilles, des personnes gentilles, and plus generally the pair gentil/gentille for masculine and feminine forms.