- •1. Basic Phrases / les expressions de base
- •Don't forget to check out my video series on informal French expressions:
- •2. Pronunciation / la prononciation
- •[Ɑ] is disappearing in modern French, being replaced by [a]. Vowels that do not exist in English are marked in blue.
- •[Œ̃] is being replaced with [ɛ̃] in modern French
- •In words beginning with in-, a nasal is only used if the next letter is a consonant. Otherwise, the in- prefix is pronounce een before a vowel.
- •4. Nouns, Articles & Demonstratives / les noms, les articles & les demonstratifs
- •6. Subject Pronouns / les pronoms sujets
- •7. To Be & To Have / Etre & avoir
- •Note: Je and any verb form that starts with a vowel (or silent h) combine together for ease of pronunciation.
- •Ordinal Numbers / Les nombres ordinaux
- •10. Days of the Week / Les jours de la semaine
- •11. Months of the Year / Les mois de l'annEe
- •14. Colors & Shapes / Les couleurs & les formes
- •15. Weather / Le temps qu'il fait
- •17. Family & Animals / La famille & les animaux
- •Note: Le gendre /ʒɑ̃dʀ/ is another word for son-in-law.
- •18. To Know People & Places / connaitre & savoir
- •19. Formation of Plural Nouns / la formation des noms pluriels
- •20. Possessive Adjectives / les adjectifs possessifs
Don't forget to check out my video series on informal French expressions:
2. Pronunciation / la prononciation
French Vowels |
|||
IPA |
Phonetic spelling |
Sample words |
General spellings |
[i] |
ee |
vie, midi, lit, riz |
i, y |
[y] |
ee rounded |
rue, jus, tissu, usine |
u |
[e] |
ay |
blé, nez, cahier, pied |
é, et, final er and ez |
[ø] |
ay rounded |
jeu, yeux, queue, bleu |
eu |
[ɛ] |
eh |
lait, aile, balai, reine |
e, è, ê, ai, ei, ais |
[œ] |
eh rounded |
sœur, œuf, fleur, beurre |
œu, eu |
[a] |
ah |
chat, ami, papa, salade |
a, à, â |
[ɑ] |
ah longer |
bas, âne, grâce, château |
a, â |
[u] |
oo |
loup, cou, caillou, outil |
ou |
[o] |
oh |
eau, dos, escargot, hôtel |
o, ô |
[ɔ] |
aw |
sol, pomme, cloche, horloge |
o |
[ə] |
uh |
fenêtre, genou, cheval, cerise |
e |
[Ɑ] is disappearing in modern French, being replaced by [a]. Vowels that do not exist in English are marked in blue.
French semi-vowels |
|||
IPA |
Phonetic spelling |
Sample words |
General spelling |
[w] |
w |
fois, oui, Louis |
oi, ou |
[ɥ] |
ew-ee |
lui, suisse |
ui |
[j] |
yuh |
oreille, Mireille |
ill, y |
French nasal vowels |
|||
IPA |
Phonetic spelling |
Sample words |
General spelling |
[ã] |
awn |
gant, banc, dent |
en, em, an, am, aon, aen |
[ɛ̃] |
ahn |
pain, vin, linge |
in, im, yn, ym, ain, aim, ein, eim, un, um, en, eng, oin, oing, oint, ien, yen, éen |
[œ̃] |
uhn |
brun, lundi, parfum |
un |
[õ] |
ohn |
rond, ongle, front |
on, om |
[Œ̃] is being replaced with [ɛ̃] in modern French
In words beginning with in-, a nasal is only used if the next letter is a consonant. Otherwise, the in- prefix is pronounce een before a vowel.
French Consonants |
||
ex + vowel |
egz |
examen, exercice |
ex + consonant |
eks |
exceptionnel, expression |
ch (Latin origin) |
sh |
architecte, archives |
ch (Greek origin) |
k |
orchestre, archéologie |
ti + vowel (except é) |
see |
démocratie, nation |
c + e, i, y; or ç |
s |
cent, ceinture, maçon |
c + a, o, u |
k |
caillou, car, cube |
g + e, i, y |
zh |
genou, gingembre |
g + a, o, u |
g |
gomme, ganglion |
th |
t |
maths, thème, thym |
j |
zh |
jambe, jus, jeune |
qu, final q |
k |
que, quoi, grecque |
h |
silent |
haricot, herbe, hasard |
vowel + s + vowel |
z |
rose, falaise, casino |
x + vowel |
z |
six ans, beaux arts |
final x |
s |
six, dix, soixante (these 3 only!) |
There are a lot of silent letters in French, and you usually do not pronounce the final consonant, unless that final consonant is C, R, F or L (except verbs that end in -r).
Liaison: French slurs most words together in a sentence, so if a word ends in a consonant that is not pronounced and the next word starts with a vowel or silent h, slur the two together as if it were one word. S and x are pronounced as z; d as t; and f as v in these liaisons. Liaison is always made in the following cases:
-
after a determiner: un ami, des amis
-
before or after a pronoun: vous avez, je les ai
-
after a preceding adjective: bon ami, petits enfants
-
after one syllable prepositions: en avion, dans un livre
-
after some one-syllable adverbs (très, plus, bien)
-
after est
It is optional after pas, trop fort, and the forms of être, but it is never made after et.
Silent e: Sometimes the e is dropped in words and phrases, shortening the syllables and slurring more words.
-
rapid(e)ment, lent(e)ment, sauv(e)tage /ʀapidmɑ̃/ /ɑ̃tmɑ̃/ /sovtaʒ/
-
sous l(e) bureau, chez l(e) docteur /sul byʀo/ /ʃel dɔktoʀ/
-
il y a d(e)... , pas d(e)... , plus d(e)... /yad/ /pad/ / plyd/
-
je n(e), de n(e) /ʒən/ /dən/
-
j(e) te, c(e) que /ʃt/ /skə/ (note the change of the pronunciation of the j as well)
Stress & Intonation: Stress on syllables is not as heavily pronounced as in English and it generally falls on the last syllable of the word. Intonation usually only rises for yes/no questions, and all other times, it goes down at the end of the sentence.
3. Alphabet / l'alphabet
a |
/a/ |
|
j |
/ʒi/ |
|
s |
/ɛs/ |
b |
/be/ |
|
k |
/ka/ |
|
t |
/te/ |
c |
/se/ |
|
l |
/ɛl/ |
|
u |
/y/ |
d |
/de/ |
|
m |
/ɛm/ |
|
v |
/ve/ |
e |
/ə/ |
|
n |
/ɛn/ |
|
w |
/dubləve/ |
f |
/ɛf/ |
|
o |
/o/ |
|
x |
/iks/ |
g |
/ʒɜ/ |
|
p |
/pe/ |
|
y |
/igrɛk/ |
h |
/aʃ/ |
|
q |
/ky/ |
|
z |
/zɛd/ |
i |
/i/ |
|
r |
/ɛʀ/ |
|
|
|