Français — tout: all/whole/every/quite
The word tout is a shape-shifter: it can be a determiner (tous les jours = every day), a pronoun (tout va bien = everything is fine), or an adverb (tout près = very near). Learn to tell the roles apart by their function and their agreement.
How it works
As a determiner before a noun group, tout agrees in gender and number: tout le monde, toute la nuit, tous les jours, toutes les femmes. As a pronoun standing alone it usually means "everything" (tout va bien; j'ai tout compris) or, for people, tous/toutes = "all of them" — where pronoun tous is pronounced with a final /s/ (Ils sont tous là). As an adverb before an adjective it means "quite / completely" and is normally invariable: tout près, tout seul, il est tout content.
The four forms and their roles
| Form | Role and meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| tout (m. sg.) | Determiner / pronoun: "all, whole, everything" | tout le monde ; tout va bien |
| toute (f. sg.) | Determiner: "whole, all the" (feminine singular) | toute la nuit ; toute ma vie |
| tous (m. pl.) | Determiner / pronoun: "all, every" (masc. plural) | tous les jours ; ils sont tous là |
| toutes (f. pl.) | Determiner / pronoun: "all" (feminine plural) | toutes les femmes ; elles sont toutes venues |
| tout (adverbe) | Adverb: "quite, very, completely" (before adjective/adverb) | tout près ; il est tout content |
Good to know
Two traps. First, adverbial tout is invariable — except before a feminine adjective beginning with a consonant or aspirate h, where it agrees for euphony: elle est toute contente, elles sont toutes seules, but elle est tout heureuse (mute h). Second, do not confuse the pronoun tous /tus/ (Ils viennent tous — the final s is heard) with the determiner tous /tu/ (tous les jours — the s is silent). Same spelling, different pronunciation.