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The basics of French pronunciation

The Basics Of French Pronunciation (A1)

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Basics of French pronunciation

 

Bonjour à toutes et à tous, today, let’s talk about the basics of French pronunciation. One of the hardest parts of learning French by yourself is that French native speakers do not pronounce words exactly how they are spelled. But that is also the beauty of the French language, isn’t it? 

Here are the essential rules that you will need to remember about French pronunciation.

 

Accents, Ligatures, and Vowels

In French, accents will either change the pronunciation of a letter (especially on the letter “e”), or the definition of a word (ou ≠ où). Accents only exist on some letters, which you may see below. 

Ligatures, on the other hand, are two letters that are attached, forming one.

 

To master the basics of French pronunciation, here is the complete list of vowels that are used in French:

 

Letter

Variations

How to pronounce

a

à

â

æ

ah (car)

ah

eh (this one is quite rare)

e

é

è

ê

ë

eeh (sharper “e”)

eh (deeper “e”)

eh

eh

i

î

ï

ee (steel)

ee

o

ô

œ

oh (hello)

euh (international phonetic alphabet sound “œ”)

u

û

ü

ù

u (sharper sound, similar to perfume)

y

ÿ

ee

 

There is only one consonant that has an accent, and you might have already seen it, even as a beginner, in the words “français” and “ça“. You’ve guessed it, the letter “ç” (C cédille). This letter is pronounced “ss”.

 

Common vowel combinations

Now that we’ve been through the basics, let’s take a look at some common combinations.

 

Syllable

Examples

Pronunciation

ai / ei

Aimer, beige

eh

ou

Bougie

ooh

oi

Moi, boire

wah

au / eau

Beau, chaud

oh

qu+vowel

Quel, quoi, qui

K (silent “u”)

gu+vowel

Vague, vogue

G (silent “u”)

Ms, lque

The double dots on the “i” cancels the basic combination. This means that you will pronounce the “i”.

Else

The double dots on the “i” cancels the basic combination. This means that you will pronounce the “i”.

 

Silent consonants

Another rule to remember in the basics of French pronunciation is that there are consonants that always (or almost) stay silent at the end of a word. These consonants are : -t , -d, -s,  -x.

You can see that in words such as: 

Tarot (taroh), coquet (cokeh), penaud (penoh), français (franseh), choix (shwah), and many more.

Nasal vowels

Something quite particular in French: nasal vowels. 
These are vowels that we pronounce… using the nose!

Nasal vowel

Pronunciation

Examples

an

[ã]

Banc, France, chance

in

[ɛ̃]

Lin, lapin, malin

on

[ɔ̃]

Bon, chausson, Japon

un

[œ̃]

Un, lundi

 
 

Same sounds, different spelling

You might also encounter the same sounds, but with a different spelling. For example: 

– in / im / ain / ein

Internet / Important / Main / Plein

– é / er / ez

Été / Manger / Sautez

– au / o / eau 

Auto / Stylo / Château

– y / i 

Stylo / Mardi


Silent letters

Can you even say you master the basics of French pronunciation if you don’t know about silent letters?

Silent letter

Examples

Pronunciation

-e

Danse, mère, père

The e at the end of a French word is silent. Danss, mehr, pehr

-er 

-ez

Manger, chanter, danser

Mangez, chantez, dansez.

If the final -r or -z have an e before, they are silent:

Manjeh, chanteh, danser

-t

Jouet, constat

The letter t at the end of a word is silent:

Foueh, joueh

-s / -x

Danses, chapeaux

The final -s in a French words is silent:

Danss, shapoh

Word stress?

When it comes to the basics of French pronunciation, one key difference between French and English lies in word stress. In English, we often emphasize different syllables within a word, but in French, it’s quite different. The stress will not be in the word itself, but in different parts of a sentence, in which you might stress the final syllables.

 

Let’s Break it Down

In English, we might say “teacher” with the stress on the first syllable: “TEA-cher.” But in French, for a similar word like “professeur,” it will sound much more monotonous “pro-fes-seur”. 

However, there will be variations within the sentences themselves. 

 

You might hear the variations in these sentences:

Je m’appelle Eden, j’enseigne le français aux étrangers.

 

Before a comma or a period, you will definitely hear a pause or the tone go lower.

Je m’appelle Eden / j’enseigne le français / aux étrangers

                          ↘️                                ⏸️                        ↘️

 

For questions, the last syllable will actually be pronounced a bit higher in tone:
Et toi, qu’est-ce que tu fais dans la vie ? ↗️

 

Why Does This Matter?

 

Understanding word stress in French is crucial for both your comprehension and pronunciation. When you know where the stress typically falls, you can sound more natural when speaking. It also helps you identify word boundaries and separate words in a sentence, making it easier to follow spoken French.

 

Here are some examples to practice, as you know these words in English:

 

“restaurant” (re-stau-rant)

“piano” (pi-ah-no)

“chocolat” (cho-co-la)

“boulangerie” (bou-lan-je-ree)

 

Take these examples and try to focus on pronouncing each syllable the same way. It might feel a bit different from English, but with practice, you’ll get the hang of it!

 

Remember, pronunciation is all about practice, so keep working on it, and you’ll sound more like a native French speaker in no time.

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