letters).

Vowels Pronunciation Example What the

Guide example
means

a is la (the)
pronounced
like 'ah' in
English

à is also là (there)
pronounced
like 'ah

â is âne (donkey)
pronounced
like 'ah' but
longer

e When placed mer (sea)

in the middle
of a syllable,
it is
pronounced
like ai in 'fair'

e When placed le (the)

at the end of
a syllable, it
is
pronounced
like er in 'her'

e is silent at the tasse (cup)

end of a word

é is été (summer)
pronounced
like 'ay'
https://www.talkinfrench.com/french-pronunciation-guide/ 5/22/23, 7:22 PM
Page 9 of 59
 è is père (father)
pronounced
like ai in 'fair'

ê is also tête (head)

pronounced
like ai in 'fair'

i, y are ski (skiing)

pronounced
like ee in
'meet'

o is poste (post
pronounced office)
like o in 'not'

ô is hôtel (hotel)
pronounced
like 'oh'

u this sound vu (seen)

does not
exist in
English; say
'ee' with
rounded lips

oi is roi (king)
pronounced
like 'wah'

ou is roue (wheel)
pronounced
like 'oo'

ai, ei are laine (wool)

pronounced

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Page 10 of 59
 like e in 'let'

au, are au (to the)

eau pronounced
like 'oh'

eu, are neuf (nine)

oeu pronounced soeur (sister)
like er in 'her'

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Page 11 of 59
 Consonant Sounds
Consonants in French are basically
pronounced the same way as in
English. But here are some rules
for you to take note of, just to
make things a little bit easier.

Consonants Pronunciation Example What the

Guide example
means

c before e or i ceci (this)

sounds like s

c elsewhere it car (coach)

sounds like k

ç sounds like s ça (that)

ch sounds like château (castle)

'sh'

g before e or i général (general)

sounds like s
in 'measure'

g elsewhere gare (station)

sounds like g
in 'go'

h is silent hôtel (hotel)

j sounds like s je (l)

in ‘measure'

qu, q sound like k qui (who)

r is rire (to
pronounced laugh)

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Page 13 of 59
 at the back of
the throat; it
is quite
similar to the
sound we
make
when are
gargling.

s at the salle (room)

beginning of
a word
sounds like s

s between two rose (rose)

vowels, it
sounds like z

Here's an important thing for you

to note:

Except for these letters: c, f, l, and

r, consonants are usually not
pronounced when it is the last
letter of the word. Take for
example the silent last letters in
the following words:

passpor(t) and Pari(s)

On the other hand, l and r are

pronounced such as in the
following:

hotel and professeur

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Page 14 of 59
 following:
the letter g is given very little

value in the standard

pronunciation, and

as you pronounce the words,

air is blocked when the back

of your tongue presses

against the soft palate.

French has four nasal sounds

which are more similar to its
English counterparts than we
realize.

These are the following:

Nasal Pronunciation Example What

sound the
Example
Means

om, pronounce nom (name)

on like ong in non (no)
'song'

um*, pronounce un (one)

un like ung in brun (brown)
'sung'

am, pronounce champ (field)

an like 'ahng' an (year)
em,en temps (time)

https://www.talkinfrench.com/french-pronunciation-guide/ 5/22/23, 7:22 PM

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 en (in)

im*, pronounce simple (easy)

in, like ang in vin (wine)
aim, 'sang' faim (hunger)
ain, bain (bath)
ein plein (full)

ien pronounce bien (well)

like 'ee-ang’

We mentioned that there are four

nasal French sounds but you must
be wondering why there are five
listed. This is because some
French speakers do not make
distinctions between um* and im*
and both are being pronounced as
'ang' like we do in sang.

5. The French
Variations
Now read up carefully because
this here is where non-French
speakers often get in trouble.
Listed below are some
pronunciations for syllables that,
when spoken, differ quite well
from how it is spoken in English.

Syllable Pronunciation Example What the

Example
Means

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Page 17 of 59
 er at the end of parler (to
a word of two speak)
syllables or
more sounds
like 'ay'

ez at the end of nez (nose)

a word
sounds like
'ay'

ail at the end of travail (work)

a word
sounds like
‘ah'ee'

eil, eille sound like soleil (sun)

'a'ee' bouteille (bouteille)

ill usually billet (ticket)

sounds like
'ee'y'

gn sounds like ni signal (signal

in 'onion'

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Page 18 of 59
 s, x sounds deux der zahng two
like z ans years

d sounds un ung grahng a tall

like t grand tahbr tree
arbre

f sounds neuf ner verr nine

like v heures hours

See also: 12 Things You Need to

Remember about French
Liaisons

7. Accent Marks (and

the di!erence it
makes)
Just like several other languages,
French makes use of accent
marks. Accents are a type of
diacritic marks which are basically
glyphs or small signs attached to a
letter. These are commonly used in
Latin-derived alphabets as well as
non-Latin ones like Chinese,
Arabic, Greek, Hebrew, Korean and
others.

French makes use of three main

accents, and these are:

https://www.talkinfrench.com/french-pronunciation-guide/ 5/22/23, 7:22 PM

Page 23 of 59
 Jorgelina
Caula
June 1, 2014

Ok mon ami, I’m argentinean & I think I need

to look for Spanish expamples hahahah…
But To be honest I enjoyed a great deal from
my first try!! I gonna make it work!!! Merci

Vote: 0 Share Reply to Jorgelina Caula

ZUNINO
VAULOT
April 25, 2014

Toutes vos publications sont excellentes. Je

RT systématiquement, surtout pour mes
ami(e)s des States principalement, mais
aussi des Pays-Bas, d’Allemagne, d’Italie
etc.. qui souhaitent apprendre et écrire le
français! Je vous souhaite beaucoup
d’adhérents. Encore BRAVO à vous!
Josiane ZUNINO VAULOT

Vote: 0 ShareReply to ZUNINO VAULOT

https://www.talkinfrench.com/french-pronunciation-guide/ 5/22/23, 7:22 PM

Page 53 of 59
 Frederic
Bibard
April 25, 2014

Merci beaucoup Josiane.

Vote: 0 Share Reply to Frederic

Talk in
French
French
Vocabulary:
129 Most
Common
Adjectives »
Talk in
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April 4, 2014

[…] A list of the most common adjectives in

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Page 54 of 59
 newsletter here. Be sure to start practicing
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Jovanna
March 27, 2014

Tous les articles sont magnifiques, cher

Frederic…

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Frederic
Bibard
March 27, 2014

Merci Jovanna

Vote: 0 Share Reply to Frederic

Les
January 23, 2016
https://www.talkinfrench.com/french-pronunciation-guide/ 5/22/23, 7:22 PM
Page 55 of 59
 January 23, 2016

I looked on so many websites for my

adult french students and this is
truly the Best explanation for
phonetics online. THANK YOU so
much, you saved me countless
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easy straightforward method.

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October 29, 2013

[…] help you in this part of your study, check

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Page 56 of 59
 Vote: 0 Reply Share
to A 20-Day Guide on How to …

The 200
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September 23, 2013

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Page 57 of 59
 Michele
Maietta
December 1, 2013

Cher Monsieur,

Merci mille fois pour toutes les choses.

Vos idees sont tres utiles. Ma
prononciation va ameliorer! Je vais
continuer a lire vos suggestions.

Michele Maietta

Vote: 0 Share
Reply to Michele Maietta

Frederic
Bibard
December 2, 2013

Merci Michele.

Vote: 0 ShareReply to Frederic

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Page 58 of 59
 Add your comment...

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