French Pronunciation by David Issokson
French Pronunciation Crash Course by David Issokson
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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French Pronunciation by David Issokson
Learn French: Say It Right From Day‐1! Bonjour! My name is David Issokson. I’m a professional online French teacher and am proud to help students all over the world learn French. I’ve been studying this beautiful language since 1987 and have reached a point of speaking without any trace of an American accent. The reason why I’m writing this e‐book is to help all students of this beautiful language to get a handle of the pronunciation. This single aspect – learning to say the words clearly and with the least accent possible – is by far the hardest part of learning to speak French. There are many tricky sounds that simply do not exist in the English language. This ranges from the infamous French “R” sound to the tricky “u” sound as in the word “tu”, or you. In this free video series crash course you’ll be receiving several short videos which cover several difficult sounds with example vocabulary words and practice sentences. First I’d like to go over the two main aspects to pronunciation: Consonants and vowels. While the consonants (b, d, f, j, k, etc.) are very similar to English, the vowels (a, e, i, u, y and h in French) and some vowel combinations are a huge challenge to non‐native speakers. Let’s look at the French consonants (les consonnes françaises). As mentioned above, almost all of these sounds are the same as in English except for the “R” sound. By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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French Pronunciation by David Issokson
French Consonants French Letter b
Pronunciation b
English Example boat
c before u,a,o
k
carrot
c before e,i,y
s
soap
Ç (called c cedilla) d f g before a,o.u
s d f g
Sam doctor France grace
g before i,e,y
j
Jay
i j
ea j
eat déjà vu
k
k
Kelly
l
l
lemonade
m
m
me
n p
n p
No puppy
r
r
radio
s
s
Sam
s ss Note: see video 9 of Crash Course Single S in middle of z word; Note: see video 9 of Crash Course t t
Sam
French Example bateau (boat), beau (handsome) confiance (trust), cusine (kitchen) cible (target), cette (this – feminine) Français (French) fentist (dentist) France, foret (forêt) gâteau (cake), gorge (throat) mangeons (let’s eat), Georges (first name) petite (small, feminine) jaune (yellow), jamais (never) Koweït (Kuwait), klaxon (horn) Limonade (lemonade), lent (slow) manger (to eat), moi (me) non (no), nom (name) petit (little, masculine), Paul (first name) rouge (red), Roger (first name) santé (health), sortie (exit) boisson (beverage)
zoo
fraise (strawberry)
tea
v
v
Victor
w (most words starting with W are from English)
w
Water
télé (TV), toujours (always) Véronique (first name), venir (to come) Whiskey, WiFi
x inside a work, at the end of words or followed by a
x
expert
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
expert (expert) vexer (to hurt), exprimer (to express)
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consonant x at the start of a word when ex is followed by an h or vowel x at the end of a word x at end of word to indicate plural z
x
example
exiger (to demand), example (example)
s silent
Sam ‐
z
zoo
dix (ten) six (six) cheveux (hair), bijoux (jewelry), délicieux (delicious) zéro (zero) zoo (zoo)
French Vowels & Vowel/Consonant Combination Sounds These sounds are a lot more complicated and demand much more attention. Almost all of them are unique to French and are really hard to learn without a teacher. While there are lots of resources available online to learn these sounds it often pays to have a personal instructor. If you’re interested in private instruction please visit my website, www.frenchlearner.com. French Letter(s) a Note: see video 2 of Crash Course ai
Pronunciation a
English Example Bahamas
French Example chance (luck), bras (arm)
ay
lay
an Note: see video 1 of Crash Course) ‐aim, ‐ain Note: see video 8 of Crash Course au
ahn
Nasal sound, doesn’t exist in English
aide (help), faire (to make,do) Français (French), tante (aunt)
uhn
Nasal sound, doesn’t exist in English
oh
boat
ao
ooh
boot
ch
sh
shop
ei
eh
pen
eu Note: see video 6 of Crash Course ‐er, ‐ez, ‐ait, ‐ais
uh
the
ay
lay
eau, aud, ot
oh
photo
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
Américain (American), main (hand), faim (hungry) au revoir, good‐bye, beau (handsome) août (August), oust (west) chez (at one’s house), choosier (to choose) Seine (river name), reine (queen) heureux (happy), un peu (a little) Français (French), parler (to speak), excusez (pardon) beau (handsome),
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chaud (hot), photo (photo) en (in), ensemble (together), embrasser (to kiss), lentement (slowly) mignon (cute), espagnol (Spanish)
en, em, ent before a consonant Note: see video 12 of Crash Course gn Note: see video 11 of Crash Course ha ill Note: see video 5 of Crash Course words ending in il Note: see video 5 of Crash Course) ll Note: see video 5 of Crash Course oi/ois/oit Note: see video 7 of Crash Course oin
unh
Nasal sound, doesn’t exist in English
“ny” in canyon
canyon
ah eal
bat feel
habitude (habit) village (village), ville (city)
Y as in “yes”
canyon
appareil‐photo (camera)
Y as in “yes”
canyon
maillot (undershirt), fille (girl)
wah
Doesn’t exist in English
oihn
on Note: see video 1 of Crash Course ou Note: see video 3 of Crash Course qu Note: see video 10 of crash course) u Note: see video 3 of Crash Course ph
ohn
Nasal sound, doesn’t exist in English Nasal sound, doesn’t exist in English
moi (me), toi (you), il boit (he drinks), bois (wood) loin (far), coin (corner)
sc before a,u,o
sc
sc before i,e,y
s
th
t
ti un, um
s uhn
non (no), chanson (song)
oo
boot
k
carrot
‐
Pointed U, doesn’t exist tu (you), super (super), in English bu (drank), su (knew), vu (saw) favor physique (physics), phrase (sentence), telephone (telephone) scalp sculpteur (sculptor), scolaire (academic) silent science (science), scène (stage) Tom maths (math), théâtre (theater) Sam prophétie (prophecy) Nasal sound, doesn’t un (a, masculine
f
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
où (where), vous (you plural/formal), beaucoup (a lot) qualité (quality), quantité (quantity)
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exist in English
indirect article), quelqu’un (somebody)
Tricky Sounds & Explanations Now we are going to look at some specific sounds. Most of these are based on sounds which tend to be nasal (but not always) and do not exist in English. I’ve made a video lesson on each of these sounds which you will receive in your email inbox.
1.“An” and “On” Sounds These are two sounds in French that can cause a lot of confusion for beginners. The reason they’re tricky is that they’re nasal sounds and aren’t fully pronounced as you’d imagine. The first such sound is “an”. To say it open your mouth a bit and say, “an”. It’s a bit like “ah” but more in the nose. Also, don’t make an “n” sound. At times the letters “en” can also indicate this same sound. Example words with the “an” sound ans years tante aunt français French anglais English cinquante 50
trente 30 quarante 40 Laurent Henri grand big
Example sentences with the “an” sound Henri a trente ans et il parle Français. Henri is 30 years‐old and he speaks French. Laurent a cinquante ans et il est un grand‐père. Laurent is 50 years‐old and he’s a grandfather.
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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The second sound is “on”. The difference between the previous “an” sound is that you pucker your lips more as if you were saying “oh”. But, the sound is still very much nasal. Example words with the “on” sound non no garçon boy onze 11 ton your oncle uncle
bonjour hello mignon cute réunion meeting marron brown confiture jam
Example sentences with the “on” sound Le garçon a onze ans et il est très mignon. The boy is 11 years‐old and he’s very cute. Mon oncle anglais a soixante‐et‐onze ans. My English uncle is 71 years‐old.
2.French “a” sound Whenever you see the letter “a” in a French word it generally has one single pronunciation: “ah”. You never pronounce it like a as in the English “cat” or “date”. Example words with the “a” sound chat cat ami friend avec with voilà ça va? How are you? salade salad
classe class dame lady date date à at la the (feminine) la‐bas over there
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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Example sentences with the “a” sound Ah bon, je ne sais pas que tu vas au Canada. Really? I don’t know you’re going to Canada. Ma tante Marie habite en Alberta. My aunt Marie lives in Alberta. Arnaud va à Paris avec son ami. Arnaud is going to Paris with his friend.
3.French “u” versus “ou” The vowel sound represented by the letter “u” doesn’t exist in English and is one of the hardest sounds to pronounce in the language for non‐native speakers. Here’s a helpful trick for learning to say it correctly. Initially, say “see”. Then bring your lips forward as if you’re going to whistle. Now say it with rounded lips: “su”. Now add a “per” on the end and you get: “super”! Example words with the “u” sound une a (feminine) jupe skirt sucre sugar musique music bus bus
tu you jus juice puce flea pull sweater rue street
Whenever you see an “ou” in a French word you pronounce this like “ooh”. When you say it use the lower portion of your voice’s range: ooh. Contrast it with the sound we just learned: “ou” and “u”. Example words with the “ou” sound vous you (formal/pl) nous we beaucoup a lot douche shower
fou crazy jouet toy loup wolf moustique mosquito
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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pousette stroller doux soft
nouveau new poulet chicken
Example sentences with the “ou” sound Le loup mange du poulet. The wolf eats some chicken. Tu as bu beaucoup de jus. You drank a lot of juice! Je suppose que vous êtes un peu fou! I suppose that you’re a bit crazy!
4.La Liaison One of the trickiest aspects to speaking and reading French is the liaison. This is when you link to words together because the first word ends in a silent consonant and the second word starts with a vowel: a, e, i, o, u and sometimes h and y. Below are four examples of la liaison. A friend (male) is: “un copain”. Notice you don’t link un and copain. Now to say “un ami” you say: “un_ami”. This also means a male friend. You must pronounce that silent “n” to say it correctly. To say a Canadian (male), say: “un Canadien”. Notice you don’t say the “n” because Canadian starts with a consonant. To say “an Englishman” say: “un_Anglais”. You link the two because Anglais starts with a vowel. To say my friend, say: “mon copain”. There’s no link because copain starts with a consonant. But to say it using “ami” you say: “mon_ami”. You must link because ami starts with a vowel. To say the the comedians say: “les comédiens.” You don’t link the two because comédiens starts with a consonant. But to say, the actors, say “les_acteurs”. You must link because acteurs starts with a vowel.
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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Example sentences with the liaison Nous_avons trois_acteurs ici. We have three actors here. Vous_êtes un très bon_ami. You are a very good friend. Mon_oncle est un bon_homme My uncle is a good man.
5.French “ll” sound The letters “ll” often occur in the middle of French words. These can cause a bit of confusion as these letters aren’t pronounced as you’d read them in English. They represent a Y sound which is like the Y in “yes”. Example words with the “ll” sound maillot undershirt travaillez work oreille ear veille old (f) fille girl famille family Example sentences with the “ll sound La vielle femme et la fille travaillent ensemble. The old woman and the girl work together. La famille voyage en France en juillet. The family is traveling to France in July. Ma veille tante s’appelle Mireille. My old aunt’s name is Mirelle.
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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The Y sound is also spelled “il” at the end of words. appareil‐photo camera vieil old (m) travail work Example sentence: Mireille a un vieil appareil‐photo. Mireille has an old camera. Exceptions: There are some words where ill is pronounced “eal” in the following words: ville city village village mille thousand Lille city name in Northern France
6.French “eu” sound One of the hardest sounds to pronounce in French is “eu”. This is because the sound doesn’t exist in English. Example words with the “eu” sound deux two eux them je veux I want un peu a little
jeux games il pleut it’s raining un euro 1 euro
Example Sentence: Il pleut mais je veux jouer avec eux. It’s raining but I want to play with them.
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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Here are some more words with eu neuf nine soeur sister heure hour
jeune young professeur teacher fleur
Example Sentence: Le jeune professeur a neuf soeurs. The teacher has nine sisters.
7.French “oi” sound One of the trickiest sounds to pronounce in French is the “oi” sound. This is because it simply doesn’t exist in English. To say the sound, say, “oi”. You’d write this: wuah. Example words with the “oi” sound moi me toi you quoi what bois I drink soit either…or roi king voilà voila
boîte box bois wood fois time joie joy loin far noix nuts poids weight
Example sentences with the “oi” sound Je crois que François a une jolie voix! I believe François has pretty voice! Toi, tu dois manger beaucoup de noix! You! You must eat a lot of nuts! Je vois ce poisson pour la première fois! I am seeing this fish for the first time! By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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8.French “in”/”ain” sound One of the hardest sounds to pronounce in French is “in” or “ain”. It sounds like the “a” as in “any” but you pronounce it in the back of the nose. Repeat: “ain”. This sound appears as “in” and “ain” when reading French words. Example words with the “ain” sound demain tomorrow main hand salle de bains bathroom pain bread train train prochain next
copain friend humain human certain certain lendemain next day mexicain Mexican africain African
Example words with the “in” sound inviter to invite insister to insist voisin neighbor coin corner fin the end/ending lapin rabbit
juin June installer to install coquin cheeky ingénieur engineer vin wine jardin yard
Example words with the “in” and “ain” sounds En juin j’invite mon vosin In June I’m inviting my neighbor. Le lapin s’installe dans le jardin. The rabbit sets himself up in the yard. Mon copain mexicain prend le prochain train. My Mexican friend is taking the net train. By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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9.French “s” versus ”ss” sound One aspect of reading French that causes some confusion is how to pronounce a single “s” versus a double “ss”. The solution is quite straight forward. Pronounce the “s” like a “z” sound and pronounce the “ss” like an “s” sound. Example words with “s” and “ss” Single S mauvaise bad fraise strawberry mayonnaise chose thing magasin store
Double SS saucisson sausage boisson beverage assiette plate poisson fish pamplemousse grapefruit
Note there are some words which can cause some confusion: Le poison = poison; while poisson means fish! Le désert = desert; while le dessert means dessert! Example sentences with “s” and “ss” Le poisson sur l’assiette est délecieux avant le dessert. The fish on the plate is delicious before the dessert. Le jus de pamplemousse est une bonne boisson. Grapefruit juice is a good beverage. La mousse au fraise est mon dessert préféré. Strawberry mousse is my favorite dessert. Il y a quelque chose de dégueulasse sur ta chemise. There’s something disgusting on your shirt.
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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French Pronunciation by David Issokson
10.French “qu” sound The French “qu” sound can cause a bit of confusion as many people want to read it as it sounds in English like “question”. But the pronunciation in French is very straight forward. You simply pronounce it like a “k” sound. Example words with the “qu” sound qui who quand when Québec Quebec Véronique Monique sympathique nice quatre 4 quatorze 14 quelque some
quel which quoi what qualité quality équipe team que that quai train platform quart one‐fourth fabriquer to produce un pique‐nique
Example sentences with the “qu” sound Véronique est une fille très sympathique! Veronique is a very nice girl! Qui fabrique la bonne qualité? Who produces good quality? Monique pense que tu as quatorze ans. Monique thinks you’re 14 years‐old. Qu’est qu’on mange quand il fait froid au Québec? What do they eat when it’s cold out in Quebec?
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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11.French “gn” sound French words with the letters “gn” can be a bit tricky! These letters are pronounced like the “ny” in “canyon” and they correspond to the “ñ” in Spanish. Example words with the “gn” sound campagne countryside gagner to win mignon cute espagnol Spanish montagne mountain champagne signal signal poignet fist
vigne vine cigogne swan signature signature signet bookmark rogner trim règne reign Pologne Poland poignard daggar
Example sentences with the “gn” sound Agnès a gagné un voyage en Espagne. Agnes won a trip to Spain. Nous avons ignoré la signal devant la montagne. We ignored the sign in front of the mountain. La campagne en Pologne est magnifique. The countryside in Poland is magnificent.
12.French “en” sound One of the most common yet difficult to pronounce sounds in French is “en”. This can also be found in words using the letters “ent”. It’s a nasal sound that that’s concentrated in the back of the nose and top of the throat. It almost sounds like “uh” there a slight “n” sound is made. A lot of words start with the “en” sound while a lot of words end with it. When words end with “ent” that’s the English equivalent of “ly”, or an adverb. For example to say “rapidly” you say, “rapidement”. By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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French Pronunciation by David Issokson
Examples word with “en” and “ent” At end of word lentement slowly totalement totally franchement honestly évident obvious parfaitement pefrectly complètement completely certainement certainly librement freely brusquement abruptly
At beginning of word en in encore again enfin finally enchanté nice to meet you envie wish desire entrée entrance ensemble together endroit place enfant child Examples sentences with “en” and “ent” J’ai encore environs cinq chiens. I still have around five dogs. Il a envie d’entendre les enfants. He wants to hear the kids. Ils sont certainement encore ensemble. They are certainly together again.
Franchement tu apprends très rapidement! Honestely you learn really quickly!
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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There’s still so much to learn! Thanks so much for taking your time to learn French pronunciation with my crash course! I do sincerely hope it has helped you to make a good beginning into your adventures studying this beautiful language! As I mentioned previously, saying the words properly from the very start is the golden key to speaking fluently down the road. Over the past year over 50 students from all over the world have been taking private lessons with me via Skype over the Internet. The advantage to these private lessons is that they advance very fast and are able to hold conversations within just weeks and months! My courses offer a very solid foundation in pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar. Most importantly, I put a large emphasis on conversation and getting you, the student to speak as much as possible. If you’d like to try a private lesson please contact me at
[email protected] today. Please provide your name, current French level and location and propose a date and time for your trial lesson. Merci beaucoup et à bientôt! David Issokson www.frenchlearner.com
By David Issokson http://www.frenchlearner.com/ © 2015
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