Where did you get the impression a boat was feminine.  Un bateau, une
chaloupe (rowboat), un paquebot (liner), un porte-avion (carrier), une
péniche (scow).  Go figure.


Kind regards,

Denys. . .

Denys Beauchemin
HICOMP
(800) 323-8863  (281) 288-7438         Fax: (281) 288-7438
denys at hicomp.com                             www.hicomp.com

-----Original Message-----
From: HP-3000 Systems Discussion [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of
[log in to unmask]
Sent: Monday, December 10, 2001 4:41 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: English

X-no-Archive:yes
Are you asking how the student of French is to determine the gender of a
noun? Or, are you asking a historical question: how did the French decide
that a bus would be masculine, but a boat would be feminine? Those are two
very different questions! When I only had your post sent to me privately, I
thought I understood the question, but now, with Denys's answer, I think
that I may have misunderstood you.

Greg Stigers
http://www.cgiusa.com

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