Forms of Tout
As an adjective, tout precedes and agrees
with the noun.
| masc. sing. |
tout le train |
the whole train |
| fem. sing. |
toute la journée |
the whole day |
| masc. pl. |
tous les enfants |
all the kids |
| fem. pl. |
toutes les mères |
all the moms |
As a pronoun, tout can be used alone;
it then means everything and is invariable.
Tout va bien. Everything's fine.
Je ne peux pas tout faire. I can't
do everything.
It can also reinforce the subject as
in: Ils sont tous là. They
are all here.
Tout can also be used with direct object
pronouns. The forms of tout follow the verb
in a simple tense and go between the auxiliary and
past participle in a compound tense.
Je les ai toutes. I have them all.
Je ne les ai pas tous eu. I didn't
have them all.
Note: The s of tous is
pronounced when tous is a pronoun.
Idiomatic Expressions with Tout
| en tout cas |
in any case |
| tout le monde |
everyone |
| tout de suite |
right away |
| de toute façon |
anyway |
| tout à fait |
completely |
| toutes sortes de |
all kinds of |
| pas du tout |
not at all |
| malgré tout |
in spite of it all |
| tout à l'heure |
in a little while |
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