11 Il n'y a rien à manger

tout

tout generally translates to “all,” “every,” or “whole” in English. However, its usage is much more nuanced and varied depending on the context.

Usage

1. Adjective

As an adjective, tout agrees in gender and number with the noun it modifies:

• Tout (masculine singular): tout le livre (the whole book)
• Toute (feminine singular): toute la journée (all day)
• Tous (masculine plural): tous les hommes (all men)
• Toutes (feminine plural): toutes les femmes (all women)

2. Pronoun

As a pronoun, it can mean “everything” or “everyone”:

• Tout est prêt. (Everything is ready.)
• Tous sont venus. (Everyone came.)

3. Adverb

As an adverb, it means “completely” or “entirely” and doesn’t change form:

• Elle est tout heureuse. (She is completely happy.)

4. Noun

It can be used as a noun to mean “everything” or “the whole”:

• Le tout est plus grand que la somme de ses parties. (The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.)

Common Expressions

tout appears in many French expressions:

• Pas du tout: Not at all
• Tout à fait: Absolutely
• Tout de suite: Right away
• Tout le monde: Everyone

Pronunciation of tout

Vocabulaire