There are some sounds in French which need a bit of practice, such as the French r, which is much more noticeable than an English r, and the very sharp u sound to be heard in words like rue and plu, which is different from the oo sound in an English word like ruin.
Silent letters
As in English, not all the letters in French words are pronounced especially final consonants. The final consonant is not sounded in the following, for example: vert (green), grand (tall), petit (small), and ouvert (open). However, if the final consonant is followed by an e, for example in the feminine form of the adjective, the consonant is pronounced. The feminine forms verte, grande, petite, and ouverte all end with consonant sounds.
French vowels
These are the main ways in which French vowels are pronounced:
a a as in fat (patte, casserole) aw (bas, cas) followed by n: en as in encore (dans, sans, plan)e uh (le, premier, repas) e as in set (merci, restaurant) followed by n: en as in encore (vent, entrer, cent) followed by r: ay (parler, dîner)é ay (occupé, région)è ai as in air (père, règle)i ee (il, billet, vie, samedi) followed by n: a as in sang (matin, fin, vin)o o as in spot (donner, mort) oh (mot, poser)u followed by n: u as in sung (lundi, brun)To make the u sound for words like rue and pure, place your lips as if you were going to whistle and make a sharp ee sound at the front of your mouth.
Vowel combinations
ai e as in set (mais, lait) followed by n: a as in sang (pain, copain)au o as in gosh (gauche)eu euh (peu, deux)eau oh (couteau)ou oo (genou, couscous)BON À SAVOIR!
Two words you will often hear oui (yes) and lui (him) are examples of a breathy w sound theyre pronounced rather like hwee and lwhee.
French consonants
Most French consonants are pronounced the same as their English equivalents. Some consonants, however, are pronounced differently depending on which vowel follows:
c k as in keen when it is followed by a, o or u (cadeau, couteau, cumin) note that when a cedilla (ç) is added to the c, it will sound like s in sit (ça, garçon, déçu) s as in ceiling when it is followed by e, i or y (séance, citron, cyprès)ch sh as in shop (chemise, mouchoir)g g as in gate when it is followed by a, o or u (gaz, égouter, aigu) s as in leisure when it is followed by e, i or y (juge, gilet, gym)gn ni as in onion (oignon, campagne)j s as in leisure (jeter, Jules)q, qu k as in keen (chaque, question)s z as in zoo when it is between vowels (heureuse, oiseau) s as in sit when it isnt (cassé, sauce, désastre)th t as in take (maths, thermostat, théâtre)t in -tion s as in sit (natation, national)Some consonants are pronounced differently to English:
h when it begins a word, it can be silent (lhomme, un hôtel) or aspirate (les haricots, le hall). When the h is silent, the word behaves as though it starts with a vowel and forms a liaison with the preceding word where appropriate (see below). When the h is aspirate, no liaison is made.r rr: a raspy sound in the back of the throat (rue, rouge, rare)ll y as in yes (fille, paille)BON À SAVOIR!
Note, however, that mille (one thousand) is pronounced to rhyme with peel.
Stress
In English words, a particular syllable is stressed (concert, dentist), whereas in French each syllable has its own length and each is pronounced with the same intensity.
Liaison
Liaison is what happens when a French word ending in a consonant which would usually be silent, for example, petit (small), les (the), precedes a word starting with a vowel or a silent h. The silent consonant is sounded to make the words flow more easily.
petit ami (boyfriend) is pronounced puh-teet-ah-mee (the t at the end of petit is sounded)
les hôtels (hotels) is pronounced layz-oh-tel (the s at the end of les sounds like a z)
Small talk
Comment ça va? How are things?
Whether youre going to be working in a French-speaking country or youre going to spend some time with your French-speaking friends, youll want to be able to chat with people and get to know them better. The phrases in this unit will help you talk naturally to friends, family and colleagues in a number of everyday situations.
GREETINGS
Just as in English, there are several ways of greeting people in French, depending on who you are addressing, and whether you want to be formal or not. Say bonjour, madame/mademoiselle/monsieur if you want to sound polite and just bonjour to someone you know a little. If youre on friendly terms with someone, you can say salut! (hi!).
Hello
Bonjour.Hello.Bonjour, madame.Good morning.Bonjour, Pierre.Good afternoon Pierre.Salut, Olivier!Hi Olivier!Bonsoir.Good evening.BON À SAVOIR!
In French there is no equivalent for good morning and good afternoon people just say bonjour during the day or bonsoir in the evening.
Use au revoir, madame/mademoiselle/monsieur to say goodbye to people you dont know well. You can just say au revoir to people you know, or use salut! (bye!) if you are on friendly terms with them.
Goodbye
Au revoir, monsieur.Goodbye.Au revoir, mademoiselle.Goodbye.Salut!Bye!Bonsoir.Goodnight.See you
À plus tard!See you later!À demain!See you tomorrow!À lundi!See you on Monday!INTRODUCING PEOPLE
You may want to introduce people you know to one another. The simplest way is by saying voici (this is) when introducing a person. You can also use je te présente (Id like you to meet) when addressing someone you know well, or je vous présente to be more formal or when speaking to several people.
This is
Voici mon mari, Richard.This is my husband, Richard.Voici mes enfants: Andrew, Gordon et Emma.These are my children, Andrew, Gordon and Emma.Je vous présente Danielle.Id like you to meet Danielle.Je te présente Kevin, mon compagnon.Id like you to meet Kevin, my partner.BON À SAVOIR!
When youre introduced to someone, youll want to know how to react. The traditional enchanté should only be used in formal or business situations these days, and very often people just say bonjour.
TALKING ABOUT YOURSELF
In order to get the conversation going, youll want to be able to talk about yourself what your name is, what you do and so on. To say what your name is in French, you use the verb sappeler which literally means to call oneself. The s (oneself) changes to m (myself) in je mappelle (my name is). For more information on reflexive verbs like sappeler, see here.
My name is
Je mappelle Jean-Pierre Métayer.My name is Jean-Pierre Métayer.Je mappelle Tarik.My name is Tarik.Il sappelle André.His name is André.Elle sappelle Lara.Her name is Lara.Vous vous appelez comment?Whats your name?Moi, cest Liam.Hi, Im Liam.If you want to say how old you are, use jai followed by your age and ans (literally I have years). ai comes from the verb avoir. For more information on avoir, see here.
Imyears old
Jai trente-sept ans.Im thirty-seven years old.Jai vingt-deux ans.Im twenty-two.Mon fils a huit ans.My sons eight.Vous avez quel âge?How old are you?BON À SAVOIR!