Master French Pronunciation in Just 1 Hour: Intensive C… — Transcript

Do you want to stop mispronouncing French words and finally be understood when you speak French?

Students tend to focus on learning grammar and making perfect French sentences. But all that grammar and vocabulary is useless if you don't understand how to pronounce French words correctly.

Today's video will teach you everything you need to know about French pronunciation. It's a complete French course in which I've compiled five French lessons for beginners.

Whether you're an absolute beginner, a beginner, or even a more advanced learner who just wants to brush up on the basics of French pronunciation, this one-hour course will help you read French words with confidence, reduce your French accent,

and master French pronunciation quickly. Let’s dive in! In this lesson, you're going to learn the difference between letters of the alphabet and sounds of the International Phonetic Alphabet, or IPA.

You will learn to associate each symbol of the IPA with its French sound. After watching it, you’ll finally be able to read phonetics.

The French alphabet has twenty-six letters. These letters are used to write French words. But these same words are pronounced using the IPA.

IPA stands for International Phonetic Alphabet. This is the IPA for French. And, these are the thirty-four sounds of French.

Each symbol represents one and only one sound, but it can be written with different French letters.

For example, this symbol, it is pronounced [ɛ̃]. But, in French words, it can be spelled: pain bread, intéressant interesting, plein full, faim hunger. Learning phonetics, I mean all these symbols and the sound they represent, will allow you to pronounce any French word perfectly,

even those you don’t know. For example, instead of looking at the letters of this word and trying to pronounce them, maybe saying “monsieur,” you'll see the actual sounds that combine to produce the word and you’ll pronounce it correctly: monsieur.

And if you’re wondering where you can find French words written phonetically, well most of my videos have them, and you can look up words online in the Larousse bilingual dictionary.

Now, let’s learn, or review, all the French sounds. For each sound, I'll write on the screen whether the exact or similar sound exists in English.

If it's a sound that doesn't exist in English, I'll give you quick and easy tips on how to make it.

Please note that I based this video on my French accent. I’m from Paris. The IPA is divided into two main sections: vowels and consonants.

The top half of the table shows all of the French vowel sounds. Vowels are the biggest challenge, as there are only six vowel letters in French: A, E, I, O, U, Y; but there are sixteen different vowel sounds.

This is why you need the IPA. Vowels are divided into three sections: oral, nasal, and semi.

On this left side, you'll find all the oral vowel sounds. With the oral vowels, the sound only comes out of your mouth.

Let's go through them. I'll say each sound twice, then you can listen to it in French words.

Be sure to repeat after me and practice out loud. [a] or [ɑ] amour love, acheter to buy. [i] idée idea, image picture. [y] utile useful, urgent urgent. [u] oublier to forget, ouvert open. [o] aujourd’hui today, osé bold. [ɔ] océan ocean, orage storm. [ø] or [ə] Europe Europe, vœu wish. [œ] œuf egg, heure hour. [e] été summer, écouter to listen. [ɛ] elle she, her herbe grass. On the middle, you'll find all the nasal vowel sounds.

You can remember the nasal symbols thanks to the little waves above the letters. With nasal vowels, the sound comes out of your nose and mouth.

Nasal vowels are an essential feature of the French language, so don't overlook them. Let's go through them now.

[ɔ̃] honte shame, oncle uncle. [ɑ̃] encore again, ange angel. [ɛ̃] Inde India, imprévu unexpected. Finally, on the right, you'll find all the semi-vowel sounds.

Semi-vowels, also known as semi-consonants, can't be used on their own. By this I mean they need an oral or nasal vowel in the same syllable.

Let's go through them. [j] chien dog, crayon pencil. [ɥ] lui him, nuit night. [w] loin far (away), oui yes. Now, let’s talk about the consonants.

The bottom half of the IPA table shows all of the French consonant sounds. There are two main types of French consonant sounds: unvoiced and voiced.

Voiced consonant sounds are made using the vocal cords, you can feel them vibrating, whereas unvoiced consonants are not.

Let’s go through the unvoiced consonant sounds. [p] Paris Paris, penser to think. [t] tête head, tapis carpet. [k] café coffee, couleur color. [s] salut hi, cerise cherry. [ʃ] chocolat chocolate, chemin path. [f] famille family, photo photo. Now, let’s go through the voiced consonant sounds.

[b] beurre butter, bisous kiss. [d] dimanche Sunday, doigt finger. [g] gâteau cake, glace ice cream. [z] zéro zero, rose pink. [ʒ] genou knee, jeudi Thursday. [v] voiture car, vendredi Friday. [l] lundi Monday, larme tear. [r] regarder to look at, rêver to dream. [m] manger to eat, mardi Tuesday. [n] non no, neige snow. [ɲ] poignet wrist, ignorer to ignore. [ŋ] parking parking lot, smoking tuxedo. In this lesson, I’m going to teach you everything you need to know about French vowels:

how to pronounce them in the alphabet and in French words, and you’ll also learn all the vowel combinations.

After watching it, French vowels will hold no secrets for you. In the alphabet, A is pronounced: [a]. Inside French words, the letter A alone, without any other vowel, is also pronounced [a].

It can be written with or without an accent. chat cat, rat rat, à peu près about, around, pâtes pasta. AN and AM are pronounced [ɑ̃].

[ɑ̃] is a nasal vowel. ange angel, jambe leg. Let’s review the rules for nasal vowels. AN and AM are pronounced [ɑ̃] if they are at the end of a word: écran screen, bilan assessment.

If they are followed by a silent consonant: gant glove, blanc white.

If they are followed by a pronounced consonant, other than N or M: ampoule bulb, chambre bedroom.

Otherwise, AN and AM are not nasal vowels: année year, banane banana, ami friend, flamme flame. AI is pronounced [e] or [ɛ].

The letter I can be written with or without a circumflex accent. aimer to love, aide help, traité treaty, s’il te plaît please. Now, let’s talk about how to know when it’s pronounced [e], its close pronunciation, and when it’s pronounced [ɛ], its open pronunciation.

AI is pronounced [ɛ] if at the end of a word and followed by a silent consonant: mais but, baie bay. AI is pronounced [ɛ] if followed by a pronounced consonant that is pronounced in the same syllable: faire to do, make, capitaine captain.

AI is pronounced [e] if followed by a pronounced consonant and a pronounced vowel, meaning that the consonant is not pronounced in the same syllable as AI: aider to help, baisser to lower. AIL and AILL are pronounced [aj]:

portail gate, corail coral, volaille poultry, ailleurs somewhere else. AIL is only pronounced [aj] if it is at the end of a word: travail work, aile wing. AIN and AIM are pronounced [ɛ̃].

[ɛ̃] is a nasal vowel. main hand, faim hunger. Remember the rules for nasal vowels. AIN and AIM are pronounced [ɛ̃]: If they are at the end of a word: pain bread, châtain chestnut brown, or if they are followed by a silent consonant:

saint saint, contraint forced, or if they are followed by a pronounced consonant, other than N or M: craindre to fear, vaincu defeated. Otherwise, AIN and AIM are not nasal vowels: fontaine fountain, aimer to love. AU is pronounced [o].

aube dawn, gauche left, sauce sauce gravy, travaux work. In the alphabet, E is pronounced: [ø]. Inside French words, the letter E alone, without any other vowel, can be pronounced [ə], [e], or [ɛ].

revenir to come back, effacer to erase, hiver winter. Now, let’s talk about how to know when it’s pronounced [ə], [e], or [ɛ].

E is pronounced [ə] in one syllable word ending with -E: je I, le the (masculine), ce this (masculine), de from, of. E is pronounced [ə] when it is not the first letter of the word, it is followed by a single pronounced consonant and a pronounced vowel.

recommencer to start again, demain tomorrow. m

impeccable spotless effort effort dessin drawing cellule cell E is pronounced [ɛ] in words ending with -ET: poulet chicken trajet journey chalet wooden cottage violet purple E is pronounced [ɛ] if followed by a pronounced consonant that is pronounced in the same syllable:

belle beautiful hôtel hotel escale stopover baguette baguette E with an acute accent is pronounced [e]: été summer beauté beauty sécurité safety journée day E with a grave accent is pronounced [ε]: frère brother crème cream mètre metre colère anger

E with a circumflex accent can be pronounced [e] or [ε]: fête party pêcher to fish crêpe crêpe pancake gênant annoying Now, let’s talk about how to know when it’s pronounced [e] or [ɛ].

It’s pronounced [ɛ] if followed by a silent consonant at the end of words: arrêt stop forêt forest It’s pronounced [ɛ] if followed by a pronounced consonant in the same syllable: tête head arête fish bone It’s is pronounced [e] if followed by a pronounced consonant and a pronounced vowel,

meaning that the consonant is not pronounced in the same syllable: têtu stubborn gêné embarrassed EN and EM are pronounced [ɑ̃] or [ɛ̃], both are nasal vowels: lent slow moyen average Now, let’s talk about how to know when it’s pronounced [ɑ̃] or [ɛ̃]:

EN is only pronounced [ɛ̃] when it is at the end of a word and not followed by a silent consonant: parisien Parisian (masculine) européen European Otherwise, EN is pronounced [ɑ̃]: argent silver money sentir to smell gencive gum enfant child

However, it is a little different for verb endings. In some verb endings, EN is pronounced [ɛ̃] even if it is followed by a silent consonant, I go more in details with the rules for verbs in the last section of this video.

Again, nasal vowel rules apply, EN and EM are nasal vowels if they are at the end of a word: ancien ancient or if they are followed by a silent consonant: temps weather time or by a pronounced consonant, other than N or M:

enlever to remove Otherwise, EN and EM are not nasal vowels: menace threat parisienne Parisian (feminine) EAU is pronounced [o]: eau water oiseau bird ciseaux scissors Verseau Aquarius EI can be pronounced [e] or [ɛ]: baleine whale veineux venous Now, let’s talk about how to know when it’s pronounced [e] or [ɛ].

EI is pronounced [ɛ] if followed by a pronounced consonant in the same syllable: seize sixteen beige beige EI is pronounced [e] if followed by pronounced consonant and a pronounced vowel: neiger to snow enseigner to teach EIL and EILL are pronounced [εj]:

soleil sun conseil advice abeille bee bouteille bottle EIN is pronounced [ε̃]. sein breast rein kidney peindre to paint atteindre to reach As usual, rules for nasal vowels apply, EIN is pronounced [ε̃] if it’s at the end of a word, followed by a silent consonant

or by a pronounced consonant, other than N or M. Otherwise, EIN is not a nasal vowel: plein full (masculine) pleine full (feminine) EU is pronounced [ø] or [œ].

bleu blue seul alone Now, let’s talk about how to know when it’s pronounced [ø], its close pronunciation, or [œ], its open pronunciation: EU is pronounced [ø] if at the end of a word: feu fire EU is pronounced [ø] if followed by a silent consonant at the end of a word:

deux two EU is pronounced [ø] if followed by a [z] sound, [z] like the little bee: [zzzzzz].

serveuse waitress EU is pronounced [ø] if followed by a [t] sound. émeute riot EU is pronounced [ø] if U has a circumflex accent: jeûne fasting EU is only pronounced [œ] if followed by a pronounced consonant, other than a [z] or [t] sound:

beurre butter heureux happy jeune young peureux fearful EUIL and EUILL are pronounced [ɶj]: écureuil squirrel fauteuil armchair feuille leaf portefeuille wallet In the alphabet, I is pronounced: [i] Inside French words, the letter I alone, without any other vowel,

is also pronounced [i]. It can be written with or without an accent. riz rice île island maïs corn With AI, the dieresis on the letter I indicates that you must pronounce each vowel separately: naïf innocent haïr to hate

IN and IM are pronounced [ɛ̃]: vingt twenty important important sapin fir tree infecté infected As usual, rules for nasal vowels apply, IN and IM are only pronounced [ɛ̃] if they are at the end of a word, followed by a silent consonant

or by a pronounced consonant, other than another N or M. Otherwise, IN and IM are not nasal vowels: fin thin (masculine) fine thin (feminine) ILL is pronounced [ij]: fille girl grille gate ILL is only pronounced [ij] if preceded by a consonant and followed by a vowel, except in:

ville town city mille one thousand tranquille quiet peaceful Lille Lille (French city) If the vowel I is followed by at least another vowel, I is pronounced [j], like Y in the English word “yes”.

[j] is a semi-vowel. It cannot be pronounced alone. It needs to be pronounced with another vowel sound in the same syllable: liasse bundle chien dog violon violin avion plane In the alphabet, O is pronounced: [o] Inside French words, the letter O alone, without any other vowel,

can be pronounced [o] or [ɔ]: lavabo washbowl chocolat chocolate Now, let’s talk about how to know when it’s pronounced [o], its close pronunciation, or [ɔ], its open pronunciation.

O is pronounced [o] when at the end of a word: vidéo video O is pronounced [o] when followed by a silent consonant at the end of words: dos back O is pronounced [o] when followed by a [z] sound:

chose thing O is pronounced [ɔ] when followed by a pronounced consonant, other than a [z] sound: homme man important important rocher rock motif reason Ô is pronounced [o]: bientôt soon côté side ON and OM are pronounced [ɔ̃].

[ɔ̃] is a nasal vowel. donc so therefore complet complete leçon lesson ombre shade As usual, rules for nasal vowels apply, ON and OM are only pronounced [ɔ̃] if they are at the end of a word, followed by a silent consonant

or by a pronounced consonant, other than another N or M. Otherwise, ON and OM are not nasal vowels: bon good (masculine) bonne good (feminine) OEU is pronounced [ø] or [œ]: œuf egg œufs eggs Now, let’s talk about how to know when it’s pronounced [ø], its close pronunciation,

or [œ], its open pronunciation: It is pronounced [ø] if at the end of a word: vœu wish It is pronounced [ø] if at the end of a word and followed by a silent consonant: nœud knot It is pronounced [œ] if followed by a pronounced consonant:

sœur sister OI is pronounced [wa]: moi me avoir to have soirée evening voiture car With OI, the dieresis on the letter I indicates that you must pronounce each vowel separately: égoïste selfish héroïque heroic OIN is pronounced [wε̃]: loin far

point point soin care coincé stuck As usual, rules for nasal vowels apply, OIN is only pronounced [wε̃] if it’s at the end of a word, followed by a silent consonant or by a pronounced consonant, other than another N or M.

Otherwise, OIN is not a nasal vowel: moins less moine monk OU is pronounced [u], U can be written with or without an accent.

lourd heavy toujours always coût cost price où where OUILL is pronounced [uj]: grenouille frog mouillé wet bouillon broth Brouilly Brouilly (wine) If the digraph OU is followed by at least another vowel, OU is pronounced [w], like W in the English word “weekend”.

[w] is a semi-vowel. It cannot be pronounced alone. It needs to be pronounced with another vowel sound in the same syllable: oui yes pingouin penguin tatouage tattoo jouet toy In the alphabet, U is pronounced: [y] Inside French words, the letter U alone, without any other vowel,

is also pronounced [y]. It can be written with or without a circumflex accent. tu you (informal) mûr ripe salut hi peinture paint UN and UM are pronounced [ε̃].

brun brown dark humble humble As usual, rules for nasal vowels apply, UN and UM are only pronounced [ε̃] if they are at the end of a word, followed by a silent consonant or by a pronounced consonant, other than N or M.

Otherwise, UN and UM are not nasal vowels: un a, an (masculine) une a, an (feminine) If the vowel U is followed by any other vowel, U is pronounced [ɥ], it’s like the way we pronounce the letter U in French.

[ɥ] is a semi-vowel. It cannot be pronounced alone. It needs to be pronounced with another vowel sound in the same syllable: nuage cloud muet mute sueur sweat nuit night In the alphabet, Y is pronounced: [i.grεk] Inside French words, Y can be pronounced [i] or [j].

cygne swan yeux eyes Now, let’s talk about how to know when it’s pronounced [i] or [j]: Y is pronounced [i] when at the beginning of a word and followed by a consonant: Yves Yves (first name) Y is pronounced [i] when at the end of a word and preceded by a consonant:

rugby rugby Y is pronounced [i] when between consonants: stylo pen Y is pronounced [j] when at the beginning of a word and followed by a vowel: yoga yoga Y is pronounced [j] when between vowels: crayon pencil When you see the letter Y between vowels, think about the letter Y as two Is

as it’s also going to affect the pronunciation of the vowel that precedes: voyager to travel essayer to try appuyer to press, push down payer to pay In this lesson, I teach you everything you need to know about French consonants:

how to pronounce them in the alphabet and in French words, you’ll learn all the pronunciation rules for hard and soft consonant pronunciation and you will also learn all the consonant combinations.

After watching it, reading French words will be like a walk in the park. In the alphabet, B is pronounced: [be] Inside French words, B is pronounced [b]: bonjour hello berceau cradle BB is also pronounced [b]: abbaye abbey dribbler to dribble

In the alphabet, C is pronounced: [se] Inside French words, C followed by E, I or Y, one of the soft vowels, is pronounced [s].

You can remember the soft vowels with the word “yeti”. puce chip citron lemon C followed by A, U or O, one of the hard vowels, is pronounced [k].

You can remember the hard vowels with the word “auto”. café coffee écorce bark peel C followed by a consonant is pronounced [k]: crabe crab acteur actor CC followed by E, I or Y, one of the soft vowels, is pronounced [ks]:

coccyx coccyx succès success CC followed by A, U or O, one of the hard vowels, is pronounced [k]: accaparer to monopolize occupé busy CC followed by a consonant is pronounced [k]: raccrocher to hang up acclamer to acclaim C-cedilla (ç) is pronounced [s]:

leçon lesson ça this that it CH is pronounced [ʃ]: bouche mouth chien dog However, in some words, CH is pronounced [k]: technique technical orchestre orchestra In the alphabet, D is pronounced: [de] Inside French words, D is pronounced [d]:

demain tomorrow idée idea DD is also pronounced [d]: caddie caddy addition bill In the alphabet, F is pronounced: [εf] Inside French words, F is pronounced [f]: fier proud soif thirst FF is also pronounced [f]: griffe claw siffler to whistle

In the alphabet, G is pronounced: [ʒe] Inside French words, G followed by E, I or Y, one of the soft vowels, is pronounced [ʒ]: gênant annoying bougie candle G followed by A, U or O, one of the hard vowels,

is pronounced [g]: gare station goutte drop G followed by a consonant is pronounced [g]: graine seed glaçon ice cube GG followed by E, I or Y, one of the soft vowels, is pronounced [gʒ]. And it’s quite rare: suggestion suggestion

GG followed by A, U or O, one of the hard vowels, is pronounced [g]. It’s also quite rare: toboggan slide GG followed by a consonant is pronounced [g]: aggraver to aggravate agglutiner to pack together GU followed by E, I or Y, one of the soft vowels,

is pronounced [g]: bague ring gynécologue gynecologist GE followed by A, U or O, one of the hard vowels, is pronounced [ʒ]: pigeon pigeon bougeoir candleholder With U, the letters E and U are pronounced together, and G is pronounced [ʒ] as it is followed by E, a soft vowel:

nuageux cloudy courageux brave GN is pronounced [ɲ]: gagner to win poignet wrist In the alphabet, H is pronounced: [aʃ] Inside French words, H is silent.

thé tea rhume cold adhésif adhesive athlète athlete In the alphabet, J is pronounced: [ʒi] Inside French words, J is pronounced [ʒ]: jeudi Thusrday jouer to play bonjour hello jambe leg In the alphabet, K is pronounced: [ka] Inside French words, K is pronounced [k]:

kilogramme kilogramme ski skiing anorak anorak (jacket) kiffer to love (slang) In the alphabet, L is pronounced: [εl] Inside French words, L is pronounced [l]: ciel sky film movie LL is also pronounced [l]: allure speed vallée valley In the alphabet, M is pronounced:

[εm] Inside French words, M is pronounced [m]: monde world maman mom MM is also pronounced [m]: gommer to erase comme as like In the alphabet, N is pronounced: [εn] Inside French words, N is pronounced [n]: neveu nephew peine sorrow

NN is also pronounced [n]: année year connu known In the alphabet, P is pronounced: [pe] Inside French words, P is pronounced [p]: pays country épicé spicy PP is also pronounced [p]: appuyer to press grippe flu PH is pronounced [f]:

pharmacie drugstore phrase sentence In the alphabet, Q is pronounced: [ky] Inside French words, Q is pronounced [k]: cinq five coq rooster QU is also pronounced [k] when followed by another vowel: cirque circus manquer to miss In the alphabet, R is pronounced:

[εr] Inside French words, R is pronounced [r]: bruit sound frère brother RR is also pronounced [r]: terre earth curry curry In the alphabet, S is pronounced: [εs] Inside French words, S at the beginning of a word is pronounced [s]:

stylo pen saumon salmon S between a consonant and a vowel is pronounced [s]: penser to think morsure bite S between a vowel and a consonant is also pronounced [s]: féminisme feminism espace space S between two vowels is pronounced [z]:

dose dosage vase mud SS between two vowels is pronounced [s]: dessin drawing tasse cup SC followed by E, I or Y, one of the soft vowels, is pronounced [s]: scène stage scene ascenseur elevator SC followed by A, U or O, one of the hard vowels,

is pronounced [sk]: escalader to climb scanner to scan SC followed by a consonant is pronounced [sk]: escroc swindler muscle muscle In the alphabet, T is pronounced: [te] Inside French words, T is pronounced [t]: coton cotton météo weather forecast

TT is also pronounced [t]: omelette omelette attendre to wait for Be careful, the ending -TION is pronounced [sjɔ̃]: action action direction direction situation situation condition condition In the alphabet, V is pronounced: [ve] Inside French words, V is pronounced [v].

vert green cheval horse In the alphabet, W is pronounced: [du.blə.ve] Inside French words, W can be pronounced [v] or [w], like W in the English word “we”.

wagon wagon kiwi kiwi fruit Wi-Fi Wi-Fi week-end weekend There is no rule to know how to pronounce W in French words.

However, this consonant is quite rare, and often pronounced [w], like W in the English word “we”.

In the alphabet, X is pronounced: [iks] Inside French words, X between two vowels is pronounced [ks]: taxe tax vexé hurt offended X at the beginning of a word is quite rare and it’s pronounced [gz]: xénon xenon Be careful with words starting with EX, X is pronounced [ks] if followed by a consonant,

and [gz] if followed by a vowel: excuse excuse exposition exhibition exister to exist exemple example In the alphabet, Z is pronounced: [zεd] Inside French words, Z is pronounced [z]: zoo zoo bizarre weird In this lesson, I go in details about all the silent letters in French

to make sure they don’t ruin your pronunciation. After watching it, you’ll finally master French pronunciation.

1 – E as the final letter of a word is silent. Île Island I don’t say [i-lə], I say [il].

These two words are pronounced exactly the same. Île Island Il He E can be preceded by a consonant.

Un homme A man Un téléphone A phone Des moules Mussels Une voiture A car Une chaise A chair E can also be preceded by a vowel.

Une idée An idea La joue The cheek La pharmacie The drugstore La banlieue The suburb La pluie The rain There are two exceptions to this rule.

E is pronounced in two letter words. Je I Le The E is pronounced if it has an accent.

J’ai mangé I ate Listen to the difference: Je mange I am eating J’ai mangé I ate 2 – Silent E inside words Some words have a silent E in them.

Un paiement A payment Un licenciement A dismissal Des remerciements Thanks Un aboiement A bark Un éternuement A sneeze The letter E is not pronounced when it’s between the letter G and a hard vowel: A, U, O.

You can remember them with the word AUTO. The letter E is there to preserve the soft pronunciation of G: [ʒ].

We often see this in the conjugation of verbs ending in -GER. Nous mangeons we are eating Je me changeais I was changing my clothes Partageons ! Let’s share!

In French words, when the letter E is preceded by one pronounced consonant and followed by one pronounced consonant then it is usually not pronounced.

This might be different in some French regions, but I based this video on my French accent. I’m from Paris.

Un boulevard A boulevard Lentement Slowly Acheter To buy Here, there are two consonants CH but they make only one consonant sound: [ʃ].

Acheter To buy Samedi Saturday Une avenue An avenue 3 - Silent final consonants in French These consonants as the final letter of a word are silent in French: D, G, P, S, T, X, and Z.

D’accord ! Ok! Gourmand Greedy Sourd Deaf Un poing A fist Long Long Du shampoing Shampoo Beaucoup A lot Trop Too much Un champ A field Jamais Never Le bras The arm Une souris A mouse Un fruit A fruit

Un concert A concert La forêt The forest Un choix A choice Le prix The price Deux Two Le nez The nose Assez Enough Du riz Rice Some words have more than one silent final consonant.

Le respect The respect Un doigt A finger Le poids The weight Le corps The body Le temps The weather As you can see, most final consonants are silent in French.

So, you can remember the non-silent final consonants with the word “careful”. C, R, F, L are pronounced as final consonants.

Avec With Le trafic The traffic Un déclic A trigger Hier Yesterday La mer The sea En hiver In winter Neuf Nine La soif The thirst Un apéritif A drink Le vol The flight En avril In April Un bol A bowl

The letters B, K and Q are quite rare as final consonants and they are also pronounced.

Un club A club Cinq Five Un bifteck A steak These rules are not hard and fast rules.

Like English, French is full of exceptions that like to come at you from all angles.

But, you will learn the exceptions as you encounter them! 4 – S and X for plurals are silent Plural don’t affect a noun or an adjective pronunciation.

La belle femme A beautiful woman Les belles femmes Beautiful women Un bon gâteau A good cake De bons gâteaux Good cakes 5 - H is mute in French The letter H is always silent in French. There is no aspiration!

Un homme A man Du thé Some tea De l’aneth Some dill The letters PH make the sound: [f].

Une photo A photo The letters CH make the sound: [ʃ]. Dimanche Sunday In some words, the letters CH are pronounced: [k].

La psychologie The psychology 6 – Verb endings The final R of the infinitive of verbs ending in -ER is not pronounced.

Manger To eat Aller To go Penser To think The ending -ENT of verbs for the third person of the plural, I mean for “ils” (they – masculine) and “elles” (they - feminine), for all verbs and all tenses is always silent.

Ils aiment They like Elles étaient They were Ils prendraient They would take 7 – Silent M and N The letters M and N are silent when they are nasal vowels.

How to recognise French nasal vowels? If there is one or more vowels followed by N or M at the end of a word.

Le pain The bread If there is one or more vowels followed by N or M and a silent consonant.

Comment How And, if there is one or more vowels followed by N or M and a pronounced consonant.

Other than N or M. Bonjour Hello The vowel sound is nasalised and we do not pronounce N or M.

Le pain The bread Comment How Bonjour Hello The letter N is not pronounced when it’s between the letter G and another vowel.

GN is pronounced [ɲ]. It is a bit tricky for English speakers as there is no English equivalent.

You can check out this video next to learn how to make the [ɲ] sound.

La montagne The mountain En Espagne In Spain Gagner To win Un oignon An onion En Allemagne In Germany 8 - Silent U The letter U is not pronounced when it’s between the letter Q and another vowel.

Une question A question Quatre Four The letter U is not pronounced when it’s between the letter G and a soft vowel: E, I, or Y.

Une bague A ring Un guide A guide 9 – And there are also sometimes random silent consonants inside words.

Here are the most common ones: En automne In fall L’asthme Asthma Longtemps For a long time Condamner To sentence Un baptême A baptism Compter To count Sept Seven Un fils A son Un rondpoint A roundabout Une sculpture A sculpture

In this lesson, I explain everything you need to know about French liaison: what it is and why they are important.

You'll see lots of examples to help you understand and remember the liaison rules. Understanding how the French link words will help you better understand native speakers, but it’s also the key to sound fluent in French.

A liaison is when the final silent consonant of a word is pronounced with the vowel sound of the word that follows.

For example: Mon My It ends with a silent N. However, if I use it in this phrase, there is a liaison between “mon” which ends with the silent consonant N and “ami” which starts with the vowel A.

The consonant N is not silent anymore and it is pronounced with the vowel sound that follows.

C’est mon ami He’s my friend But in this sentence, there is no liaison as the word that follows “mon” starts with a consonant.

The final consonant N of “mon” remains silent. C’est mon chat It’s my cat. The liaison adds an extra sound.

Chez at one’s place Je suis chez elle. I'm at her place. On We (informal) On est arrivés. We've arrived.

Premier First J’habite au premier étage. I live on the second floor. The liaison can add seven different consonant sounds.

[z] is added when the liaison is made with the final silent consonants S, X and Z.

Des Some J’ai des enfants. I have children. Deux Two Elle a deux ans. She's two years old.

Chez at one’s place Je vais chez eux. I'm going to their house. [n] is added when the liaison is made with the final silent consonant N.

En In J’habite en Angleterre. I live in England. [t] is added when the liaison is made with the final silent consonants T and D.

Petit Small little short C’est un petit ordinateur. It's a small computer. Grand Tall big large great C’est un grand homme. He's a great man.

As you can see, the word “homme” starts with the consonant H. But, as H is silent, the word starts with the vowel sound [ɔ].

Liaisons can happen between the final silent consonant of a word and the word that follows if it begins with a vowel or a mute H.

[v] is added when the liaison is made between the number nine and the words “heures” (hours, o’clock) and “ans” (years, years old).

Neuf Nine Il est neuf heures. It's nine o'clock. J’ai dix-neuf ans. I'm nineteen years old.

“Neuf” doesn’t end with a silent consonant. But its [f] sound is pronounced [v] with “heures” (hours, o’clock) and “ans” (years, years old).

With all the other words, the consonant F is not silent and it is pronounced [f].

Il y a neuf étudiants. There are nine students. [r] is added when the liaison is made with the final silent consonant R.

Premier First Elle attend son premier enfant. She is expecting her first child. [p] is added when the liaison is made with the final silent consonant P.

Trop Too, too much C’est trop important. It's too important. [g] is added when the liaison is made with the final silent consonant G.

Long Long C’est un long hiver. It's a long winter. Liaisons are important. Not only the French might not understand you if you forget a compulsory liaison or make a forbidden liaison, but liaisons can help you differentiate between singular and plural.

Il He Ils They (masculine or mixed group) Il aime le chocolat. He likes chocolate.

Ils aiment le chocolat. They like chocolate. leur their (singular) leurs their (plural) Ils sont venus avec leur enfant. They came with their child.

Ils sont venus avec leurs enfants. They came with their children. Liaisons can help you differentiate between different ideas.

Six Six The [s] sound of number six is replaced by a [z] sound in the liaison.

Six ans Six years Six cents Six hundred The number six is pronounced [si] when the word that follows starts with a consonant.

The same happens with number 10: Dix Ten Dix hommes Ten men Dix femmes Ten women Liaisons can also help you differentiate between masculine and feminine.

Grand Tall, big, large, great (masculine) Grande Tall, big, large (fem.) Grand ami Great (male) friend Grande amie Great (female) friend There are compulsory, prohibited and optional liaisons.

The liaison is compulsory between a determiner and the noun or adjective that follows it.

The determiner can be an article: Un A, an Un arbre A tree Des Some Des assiettes Plates Les The (plural) Les épinards Spinach The determiner can also be a possessive adjective: Mon My (masculine) Mon œil My eye Ses His/her (plural)

Ses yeux His/her eyes Nos Our (plural) Nos amis Our friends The determiner can be a demonstrative adjective: Ces These Ces étudiants These students Ces abeilles These bees Ces enfants These children The determiner can be a number: Deux Two

Deux ans Two years Trois Three Trois objets Three objects Dix Ten Dix élèves Ten students The determiner can be an indefinite adjective: Aucun None Aucun homme No man Quelques A few, some Quelques heures A few hours Plusieurs Several

Plusieurs araignées Several spiders The liaison is compulsory between an adjective and the noun that follows it.

Gros Large big thick fat De gros ennuis Serious trouble Grand Tall big large great Un grand homme A great man Petit Small little short Un petit ordinateur A small computer The liaison is compulsory between the subject pronoun and the verb that follows it.

On We (informal) On est We are Vous You (formal or plural) Vous avez You have Elles They (feminine) Elles habitent They live The liaison is compulsory between the object pronoun and the verb that follows it.

Les Them Je les appelle. I'm calling them. En Some Il n’y en a plus. There are no more.

Nous Us Ça nous arrive. It happens to us. The liaison is compulsory between two pronouns.

Ils They (masculine or mixed group) Ils y pensent. They're thinking about it. Nous Us Il nous en a parlé. He told us about it.

Elles They (feminine) Elles y sont déjà allées. They've already been there. The liaison is compulsory between the verb and pronoun that follows it.

Allons Allons-y ! Let's go ! Prends Take Prends-en ! Have some! Ont Ont-ils appelé ? Did they call?

The liaison is compulsory after a one-syllable preposition: Dans In within during Dans une heure In an hour Chez At one’s place Elle est chez elle. She's at home.

Sans Without Sans oignon Without onion En In, during En Irlande In Ireland Sous Under Sous un pont Under a bridge The liaison is compulsory between a one-syllable adverb and the adjective that follows it.

Plus More C’est plus avantageux. It's more advantageous. Très Very C’est très important. It's very important.

Bien Well Un stade bien avancé A well-advanced stage The liaison is compulsory within most compound words and fixed expressions.

Les Champs-Élysées The Champs-Élysées Les États-Unis The United States Un sous-entendu An innuendo Avant-hier The day before yesterday De temps en temps From time to time De plus en plus More and more De moins en moins Less and less

Plus ou moins More or less Petit à petit Little by little Tout à l’heure Earlier / later Tout à fait Exactly, certainly The liaison is forbidden after “et”.

The final T of “et” never comes to life with the liaison, it always remains silent.

Et And Une fille et un garçon A girl and a boy Un homme et une femme A man and a woman The liaison is forbidden before an aspirated H.

In French, there are two H: the mute H and the aspirated H. Both H are silent.

The difference is that the mute H allows the liaison and the aspirated H prohibits it.

There’s no rule to know when an H is mute and when it is aspirated.

To find out whether the initial H of a word is mute or aspirated, you can consult Wikipedia or the Larousse bilingual dictionary.

This apostrophe indicates an aspirated H. Both links are in the description. En haut Upstairs Un hamac A hammock The liaison is forbidden before the numbers eight and eleven.

Les huit garçons The eight boys Les onze filles The eleven girls The liaison is forbidden between the singular noun and the adjective that follows it.

Un étudiant étranger A foreign student Un garçon anglais An English boy The liaison is forbidden between the subject and verb that follows it, if the subject is a polysyllabic pronoun or a nominal group (such as a determiner + noun, determiner + noun + adjective and so on...).

Quelqu’un arrive. Someone’s coming. Les enfants appellent. The children are calling. Un enfant courageux arrive. A brave child is coming.

The liaison is forbidden before first names. Chez Annabelle At Annabelle's Chez Olivia At Olivia's Chez Alex At Alex's The liaison is forbidden after interrogative adverbs: Quand arrivez-vous ? When will you arrive?

Combien en veux-tu ? How many do you want? Comment as-tu su ? How did you know?

With the exception of this question in which the liaison is required: Comment allez-vous ? How are you? (plural or formal) And except when “quand” is followed by “est-ce que”, in this case the liaison is also compulsory: Quand est-ce que vous arrivez ? When will you arrive?

Quand arrivez-vous ? When will you arrive? Quand est-ce que tu as mangé ? When did you eat?

Quand as-tu mangé ? When did you eat? For all other cases, the liaison is optional.

However, optional liaisons are quite formal. Optional liaisons are rarely used in everyday life. Congratulations on completing French pronunciation 101!

You now know everything about French pronunciation for beginners. If you want to be mistaken for a more advanced learner, then you should watch these lessons in which I explain in details how to pronounce the most difficult French sounds.

À la semaine prochaine ! See you next week!