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A2 · Nouns & Articles · Published
Tout, Toute, Tous, Toutes
Tout has four written forms — tout, toute, tous, toutes — because before a noun it agrees like an adjective: tout le temps, toute la journée, tous les jours, toutes les semaines. Which form you need depends on the job the word is doing: determiner ("all, every"), pronoun ("everything, all of them"), or adverb ("very, completely").
Each job has its own small rule set — including a detail many learners never hear: the final s of tous is silent as a determiner but pronounced as a pronoun. Below, the three jobs one by one, then the fixed expressions, including tout le monde and its singular verb.
In short
- Before a noun, tout is a determiner and agrees: tout le temps, toute la journée, tous les jours, toutes les semaines.
- Standing alone, it is a pronoun: tout = everything; tous / toutes = all of them. Pronoun tous sounds its s: [tus].
- Before an adjective, tout is an adverb meaning "very" and usually stays invariable: tout seul — but toute seule.
determinerpronounadverb· hover a highlighted word for its label
Determiner: tout + article + noun
Whenever tout sits in front of an article + noun, it works like an adjective and takes the gender and number of that noun — the same logic as adjective agreement. Since the article is there too, the pattern is always tout + le/la/les + noun.
| Form | Agrees with | Example |
|---|---|---|
| tout | masculine singular | tout le temps — all the time |
| toute | feminine singular | toute la journée — the whole day |
| tous | masculine plural | tous les jours — every day |
| toutes | feminine plural | toutes les semaines — every week |
It rains all the time here.
— Temps is masculine singular, so the determiner is tout.
I worked all day.
— Journée is feminine, so French says toute — even though English "all day" never changes.
She calls her grandmother every week.
— Semaines is feminine plural: toutes.
Pronoun: tout, tous, toutes
Without a noun after it, tout becomes a pronoun. Alone and invariable, tout means "everything":
Tout est prêt. Merci pour tout.
The plural forms tous and toutes point back to people or things already mentioned and mean "all of them". They often float after the verb — English usually fronts "all" ("all my friends came"), while French can say je les connais tous — "I know all of them".
Everything is fine, don’t worry.
— Standing alone as the subject, Tout means "everything" and takes a singular verb.
The pronunciation switch: tous [tu] vs tous [tus]
Here is the detail that separates the two jobs in spoken French. Written tous is one word, but it has two pronunciations, and the grammar decides which one you say.
How to say tous
- Determiner tous (a noun follows): silent s — tous les jours = [tu le ʒuʁ]
- Pronoun tous (no noun follows): pronounced s — ils sont tous là = [tus]
We go to the market every Saturday.
— A noun follows, so determiner tous keeps a silent s: [tu].
My friends are all here.
— No noun follows, so pronoun tous sounds its s: [tus].
Adverb: tout = "very, completely"
Before an adjective or another adverb, tout is an adverb: tout seul (all alone), tout doucement (very gently). Adverbs normally never agree — but this one breaks the rule in exactly one case.
Adverbial tout
- Masculine adjective: invariable — tout seul, ils sont tout tristes
- Feminine adjective starting with a consonant: agrees — toute seule, toutes seules
- Feminine adjective starting with a vowel sound: invariable — tout étonnée
She lives all alone.
— Seule is feminine and starts with a consonant, so the adverb becomes toute.
She was quite astonished to see you.
— Étonnée starts with a vowel, so tout stays invariable.
Fixed expressions you meet every day
A handful of set phrases with tout are worth learning as whole chunks — several of them are among the most frequent expressions in spoken French.
| Expression | Meaning |
|---|---|
| tout le monde | everyone (singular verb!) |
| tout de suite | right away |
| pas du tout | not at all |
| tous les deux | both (s pronounced) |
| tout à fait | exactly, absolutely |
Everyone arrived on time.
— Tout le monde means "everyone" but takes a singular verb — never sont.
They are both coming.
— In this fixed phrase tous sounds its s: [tus].
Common mistakes
✗Il travaille tout les jours.
✓Il travaille tous les jours.
Before les + plural noun, the determiner must agree: jours is masculine plural, so tous.
✗Tout le monde sont là.
✓Tout le monde est là.
Tout le monde means "everyone" but is grammatically singular — the verb is always singular.
✗Elles rentrent tout seules.
✓Elles rentrent toutes seules.
Before a feminine adjective starting with a consonant, adverbial tout agrees: toutes seules.
✗Elle était toute étonnée de gagner.
✓Elle était tout étonnée de gagner.
Étonnée starts with a vowel sound, so adverbial tout stays invariable — no agreement before vowels.
Check yourself
1 / 5Nous travaillons ___ les jours.
2 / 5Tout le monde ___ prêt.
3 / 5Il a plu ___ la journée.
4 / 5Elle est rentrée ___ seule.
5 / 5In « Ils sont tous d’accord », how is tous pronounced?
Frequently asked questions
Is tout le monde singular or plural?
Singular, always. Tout le monde means "everyone", but grammatically it is built on le monde, a singular noun, so the verb stays singular: tout le monde est là, never tout le monde sont là.
When do you pronounce the s in tous?
Pronounce the s when tous is a pronoun with no noun after it: ils sont tous là = [tus]. Keep it silent when tous is a determiner before a noun: tous les jours = [tu]. The fixed phrase tous les deux also sounds the s.
What is the difference between tous and toutes?
Both are plural: tous goes with masculine (or mixed) nouns and groups — tous les jours, ils sont tous là — while toutes goes with feminine ones: toutes les semaines, elles sont toutes là.
Does tout change when it means "very"?
Usually not: as an adverb it is invariable — tout seul, tout doucement, elle est tout étonnée. The one exception: before a feminine adjective starting with a consonant, it agrees: toute seule, toutes seules.
Memory tip
Three quick questions pick the form. Is there a noun after it? Agree fully (tous les jours). Is it standing in for people? Say the s: [tus]. Is it in front of an adjective meaning "very"? Keep it tout — unless the adjective is feminine and starts with a consonant.
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