Expert: Julie Foss - 12/16/2004

Question
In the following sentence, does there need to be an "e" on the end of "fourni" because "histoire" is feminine?  Why or why not?  
"Ayant perdu ses parents quand il était très petit, il manque d'histoire personnelle fourni par une famille."
Thanks!  

Answer
Hi Miranda,
Yes "fourni" in this case needs an "e" to agree with the feminine noun "histoire".  In this example "fourni" is being used as an adjective (not a past participle), so it must agree in gender and number with the noun it's modifying.  If "fourni" were being used as a past participle with the auxiliary verb "avoir" there would be no agreement (for example, "personne n'a fourni une histoire personnelle...").

I hope this is helpful!  Please feel free to write back if you have other questions.