Accordcaoutchouc
le caoutchouc
rubber
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How do you say caoutchouc in French?
How do you pronounce caoutchouc in French?
caoutchouc is pronounced /lə kautʃu/ in French.
Example sentences
Le caoutchouc noir est très élastique et résistant.
Black rubber is very elastic and resistant. (The masculine adjectives 'noir' and 'résistant' agree with the masculine noun 'caoutchouc')
Ce caoutchouc industriel doit être purifié avant son utilisation.
This industrial rubber must be purified before its use. (The masculine article 'ce' and the masculine adjective 'industriel' clearly mark the noun as masculine)
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Why is it masculine?
Caoutchouc is masculine in French. It derives from the Tupi word "cahuchu" (from indigenous South American languages), which was borrowed into French in the 18th century to describe rubber. The gender assignment appears to be arbitrary, as there is no productive grammatical rule that determines why this particular borrowed word became masculine rather than feminine. The masculine gender was established during the initial adoption of the word into French usage and has remained standard since then.
What is the French word for rubber?
The French word for rubber is le caoutchouc — masculine.
Gender across languages
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