Note that certain adjectives change their meanings depending if they appear before or after the noun.
Look at these uses of ancien:
L'ancienne maison où j'habitais
The former house where I lived
La maison ancienne où j'habite
The old house where I live
Mon ancien petit copain
My ex-boyfriend
Ce tableau ancien
This ancient painting
Before the noun, ancien means 'former' / 'ex-' / no longer
After the noun it means 'ancient' / 'old'
-> Note that the adjective ancien in the sense of "ancient" is not really used for people.
Remember that generally adjectives appear after the noun, but some very common adjectives go before.
See Adjectives usually go AFTER nouns (adjective position) and Short and common adjectives that go BEFORE nouns (adjective position).
See also:
Propre = own / clean (adjectives that change meaning according to position)
Cher= dear / expensive (adjectives that change meaning according to position)
Certain = specific / sure (adjectives that change meaning according to position)
Dernier = final / previous (adjectives that change meaning according to position)
Vrai = real / true (adjectives that change meaning according to position)
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
6 January 2017
2 replies
Susan suggested a great mnemonic to remember this lesson !
Aurélie
Kwiziq language super star
6 January 2017
6/01/17
When beFore a word, it means Former.
Not the most graceful mnemonic in the world, but it helped until I had mastered the difference."
Dorell
Kwiziq community member
28 May 2017
28/05/17