French phonetics against wrinkles. Theoretical phonetics of the French language

28. Letter “ y” between vowels “decomposes” into 2 “i”: royal (roi – ial = [ rwa- jal]) .

• Between consonants it reads like [i]: stylo.

29. Letter combinations “ an, am, en, em” give a nasal sound [ɑ̃]: enfant [ɑ̃fɑ̃], ensemble [ɑ̃sɑ̃bl].

30. Letter combinations “ on, om” give a nasal sound [ɔ̃]: bon, nom.

31. Letter combinations “ in, im, ein, aim, ain, yn, ym” give a nasal sound [ɛ̃]: jardin [ Ʒardɛ̃], important [ɛ̃portɑ̃], symphonie, copain.

32. Letter combinations “ un, um” give a nasal sound [œ̃]: brown, perfume.

33. Letter combination “ oin” reads [wɛ̃]: coin.

34. Letter combination “ ien” reads [jɛ̃]: bien.

35. Letter “ t” gives the sound [ s ] before “ i ” + vowel: national .

Exception: amitie , pitie .

• But, if the letter "s" is in front of the letter "t", "t" is read as [t]: quest ion .

36. Fluent [ǝ] in the flow of speech may fall out of pronunciation or, conversely, appear where it is not pronounced in an isolated word:

Acheter, les cheveux.

In the speech flow, French words lose their stress, uniting into groups with a common semantic meaning and a common stress on the last vowel (rhythmic groups).

Reading within a rhythmic group requires obligatory observance of two rules: chaining (enchainement) and binding (liaison).

a) Clutch: the final pronounced consonant of one word forms one syllable with the initial vowel of the next word: elle aime, la salle est claire.

in French

French is famous for its complex spelling. Such a number of silent letters, that is, letters that are not pronounced, as well as combinations of several letters that are read with one sound, are not found in any other European language. This is due to the history of the development of the language and the national traits of its people - the French do not want to forget their ancestors and, in tribute to them, retain their complex writing, but constantly simplify their oral speech.

If you come to terms with the fact that some of the letters do not need to be read, then reading in French is quite simple, but writing is much more difficult. And by ear, there is very little chance of spelling a word in French correctly if you have never seen how it is spelled, which is why it is so important to read books in French. Only books can help you learn French spelling.

For Russian speakers, there is a certain difficulty in mastering French pronunciation, since it has a number of sounds that have no analogues in Russian. But these sounds are few and easy to master.

In French it is used Latin alphabet, there are no own letters, but there are letters with so-called diacritics (hyphens, sticks, ticks and dots above the letters), which we will consider below

Let's move on to reading rules.

Vowels and their combinations

AT general case vowels are read quite standardly: a [a], e [e], i [and], o [o], u [y], y [and]

But they have some peculiarities

1. Letter e:

• in an open unstressed syllable it reads like [œ] - something between o, e and e (we fold our lips as if to pronounce o, but try to pronounce e)
• at the end of a word of several syllables is not readable at all

2. Letter u reads like something between y and y (as in the word tulle)

3. Letter y:

• between vowels reads like [th] ( royal).
• between consonants reads like [and] ( stylo).

4. Before consonant sounds [r], [h], [g], [c], [vr], stressed vowels become long: base [baaz].

Vowels with diacritics (dashes and sticks)

Above French vowels, we often see different dashes, sticks, ticks, dots, etc. This is again a tribute to the French for their ancestors, since these symbols mean that there used to be a consonant next to this letter, which is no longer written. For example, the word holiday fête came from the Latin word and lost the letter s in the middle, but in the Russian word of the same origin "festival" and the Spanish "fiesta" this letter remained.

In most cases, these symbols do not affect pronunciation, but help to distinguish similar words in meaning, but you will not hear this difference by ear!

You only need to remember the following options:

• è and ê read as [ɛ] (like Russian e): tete.
• é reads like [e] (like e in a smile): tele.
• if there are two dots above the vowel, then you just need to pronounce it separately from the previous one: Noël, egoist

Special combinations of vowels

• oi reads like [wa]: trois [trois].
• ui reads like [ui]: n uit [nui]
• ou reads like [y]: cour [chicken].
• eau andau read like [o]: beaucoup [side], auto [from].
• eu, œu and letter e(in an open unstressed syllable) are read as [œ] / [ø] / [ǝ] (something between o and e): neuf [neuf], regarder [regarde].
• ai and ei read like [e]: mais [me], beige [bezh].

Consonants and their combinations

Most of the consonants are read in the standard way:

b - [b]; c - [k]; d - [d]; f - [f]; g - [g]; h - [x]; j - [j]; l - [l]; m - [m]; n - [n]; p - [p]; r-[p]; s - [s]; t - [t]; v - [in]; w - [ue]; x - [ks]; z - [z]

Features of French consonants:

• h never read
  
• l always read softly
• n at the end of a syllable is always read into the nose
• r always read a card

But, of course, there are other ways to read these consonants:

1. consonants are NOT readable (silent consonants):

• At the end of words are not read: t, d, s, x, z, p, g, es, ts, ds, ps (rose, nez, climat, trop, heureux, nid, sang; roses, nids, cadets)
• Unreadable at the end of a word c after n: unbanc.
• Verb endings are missing -ent: ilsParent.
• At the end of the word, r is not read after e (- er): parler.

Exceptions: in some nouns and adjectives, for example: hiver [iver] , cher [shar] , mer [mayor], hier [yer], fer [fair] , ver [ver] .

2. special cases of reading consonants

• double consonants are read as one sound: pomme [pom],class [class].
• c reads like [s] before i, e, y and, if spelled with a tail at the bottom ç : cirque,garcon , in in other cases it is read as [to]
• g reads like [w] before i, e, y: courage, inin other cases it is read as [r]: garcon [garcon]
• s between vowels reads like [з]: vase [vaaz]
• x reads:

1. at the beginning of a word between vowels as [gz]: exotic ]
   
2. in cardinal numbers as [s]: six [sis], dix[dis].
3. in ordinal numbers as [h]: sixième [sizem], dixième[disem]
4. in other cases as [ks]

• t reads like [s] before i + vowel: national [national]

3. special combinations of consonants

• ch reads like [w]: chercher [hershe].
• phreads like [f]:photo [photo].
• gn reads like [n]: ligne [lin].

Special combinations of vowels and consonants

• qu reads like [k]: qui [ki].
• gu before a vowel it reads like [r]: guerre [ger].
• il and ill reads like [th]: travail [grass], famille [surnames].

Exceptions: ville [ville], mille [miles], tranquille [trankil], Lille [lille].

Nasal sounds (n at the end of a syllable is always read into the nose):

• an, am, en, em[en]: enfance, ensemble
• on, om[is he]: bon, nom
• in, im, ein, aim, ain, yn, ym[en]: jardin
  
• un, um[yeon]: brown, perfume
• oin[wen]: coin.
• ien[en]: bien.

stress

Here you are waiting for just great news! In French, the stress always falls on the last syllable. There are no more rules. There is no such gift for language learners in any other European language.

But remember, if the words are connected or linked, then the stress falls on the last syllable of the last word of this construction.

Coupling and Linking Words in French

• Clutch: the final pronounced consonant of one word forms one syllable with the initial vowel of the next word: el l e aime [elem]
  
• Linking: the final silent consonant begins to sound, linking with the initial vowel of the next word: c'es t elle [se tel], à neu f heures [and never].

Apostrophe

An apostrophe is a comma above.

Pronouns and articles ending in a vowel lose it and are replaced by an apostrophe if they are followed by a word beginning with a vowel

Instead of c e est - c'est [se], l e arbre - l’arbre [larbre], j e ai - j'ai [zhe], je t e aim - je t'aim [zhe tem]

If in doubt how to read a word, enter it in any free online translator and click listen. Google has such a translator. The French-Russian version of the translator is so-so, but he voices the words well :)

Typical mistakes of Russian speakers in the pronunciation of French words:

Usually, a Russian person speaking French is easiest to identify by the incorrect pronunciation of those French sounds that have no analogues in Russian:

• Russians pronounce the sound [œ] as [e], but it is necessary as something between o, e and e (we fold our lips as if to pronounce o, but we are trying to pronounce e). This sound appears when reading eu and e at the end of a word consisting of one syllable (qu e, f eu, p eu x, m e, t e, c e, v oeu, nerve eu x, s eu l, l eu r, c oeu r, s oeu r)
• we make a sound [u] like the usual [y] or [y], but you need something in between y and y (as in the word "tulle")
• carat french r pronounce sloppily
• and we pronounce nasal sounds as simply [n].
• also in Russian in French there is often no difference between long and short vowels
• and too hard pronunciation of the letter l
  

But even if you say it this way, you will still be understood. It's better to speak French with a Russian accent than not to speak at all.

The French language is very rich in reading rules.. But this has its plus: they are quite understandable, it is worth learning them once, and you can read any word.

Of course, there are many exceptions, including words that, depending on the reading, change their meaning. But this will come gradually with the replenishment of the vocabulary, and for starters, you should familiarize yourself with the rules, thanks to which you can read anything.

1. The stress in a word always falls on the last syllable.(except for some words of foreign origin)

2. At the end of the words are not read: “e, t, d, s, x, z, p, g” (except for some exceptions), as well as the letter combinations “es, ts, ds, ps”: rose, nez, climat, trop.

3. The end of the verbs “-ent” is not read: ils parlent.

4. At the end of the verb in the infinitive, “r” is not read after “e” (-er): parler.

5. The letter “l” is always read softly, softer than the Russian “l”.

6. Double consonants are read as one sound: pomme.

7. The letter “s” between vowels gives the sound [z]: rose.
In other cases - [ s ]: veste.
Two "s" (ss) are always read as [ s ]: class .

8. The letter “x” at the beginning of a word between vowels is read as: exotique [ɛgzotik].
Not at the beginning of a word, the letter “x” is pronounced like [ ks ]: taxi .
In cardinal numbers, it is pronounced like [s]: Six, dix.
In ordinal numbers it is pronounced like [z]: Sixième, dixième.

9. The letter “c” is read as [ s ] before “i, e, y”: cirque.
In other cases, it gives the sound [ k ]: cage .
“ç” is always read as a [s] sound: garçon.
At the end of the word the letter "c"
In most cases, it is pronounced like [ k ]: parc.
Not pronounced after nasal vowels - banc and in some words (porc, estomac [ɛstoma], tabac).

10. The letter “g” reads like [Ʒ] before “i, e, y”: cage.
In other cases, the letter gives the sound [g]: galop.
The combination “gu” before a vowel reads like 1 sound [g]: guerre.
The combination “gn” is read as a sound [ɲ] (similar to Russian [н]): ligne.

11. The letter "h" is never read: homme.

12. The letter combination “ch” gives the sound [ʃ] = Russian [sh]: chat [ʃa].

13. The letter combination “ph” gives the sound [f]: photo.

14. The letter combination “qu” gives 1 sound [k]: qui.

15. The letter “i” before the vowel and the combination “il” after the vowel at the end of the word are read as [j]: miel, ail.

16. The letter combination “ill” is read as [j] (after a vowel) or (after a consonant): famille.

17. The letter combination “oi” gives a semivowel sound [wa]: trois.

18. The letter combination “ou” gives the sound [u]: cour.

19. Letter combinations “eau”, “au” give the sound [o]: beaucoup, auto.

20. The letter combinations “eu”, “œu” and the letter e (in an open unstressed syllable) are read as [œ] / [ø] / [ǝ]: neuf, pneu, regarder.

21. The letter “è” and the letter “ê” give the sound [ɛ]: crème, tête.

22. The letter “é” reads like [e]: télé.

23. Letter combinations “ai” and “ei” are read as [ɛ]: mais, beige.

24. The letter “y” between vowels “decomposes” into 2 “i”: royal (roi – ial = ).
Between consonants it reads like [i]: stylo.

25. Letter combinations “an, am, en, em” give a nasal sound [ɑ̃]: enfant [ɑ̃fɑ̃], ensemble [ɑ̃sɑ̃bl].

26. Letter combinations “on, om” give a nasal sound [ɔ̃]: bon, nom.

27. Letter combinations “in, im, ein, aim, ain, yn, ym” give a nasal sound [ɛ̃]: jardin [Ʒardɛ̃], important [ɛ̃portɑ̃], symphonie, copain.

28. Letter combinations “un, um” give a nasal sound [œ̃]: brun, parfum.

29. The letter “t” gives the sound [ s ] before “i” + vowel: national.

There are really a lot of rules at first glance, but thanks to practice, in a few lessons you can easily learn them, and now - you can already read French! Certainly, French "r" is not given immediately but it can be mastered if you work hard.

help you plunge into the diversity French phonetics and learn real French pronunciation. By the way, pronunciation is trained not only by speaking, but also by listening to French speech, so join us to listen and speak French more, and you will succeed!

Let's start with the rules of reading. I only beg you: do not try to learn them right away! Firstly, it will not work - after all, there are a lot of them, and secondly, it is not necessary. Everything will settle down over time. You can just periodically peep at this page. The main thing is to read them carefully (not even in one sitting), look at the examples, try to do the exercises and check yourself - there is a sound next to the exercises - how the French pronounce the same words.

In the first six lessons, in a separate tab, you will find a cheat sheet on all French reading rules, so you will always have all the material from this page in a compressed form at your fingertips. :)

In the first six lessons, in a separate tab, you will find a cheat sheet on all French reading rules, so you will always have all the material from this page in a compressed form at your fingertips. :)

In French, the stress ALWAYS falls on the last syllable... This is news to you, isn't it? ;-)

-s, -t, -d, -z, -x, -p, -g (as well as their combinations) at the end of words DO NOT READ.

Vowels

e, è, ê, é, ё under stress and in a closed syllable it reads like "e": fourchette [buffet] - a fork. "But there is a nuance" (c), which can be neglected at the initial stage. Reading a letter e in all its manifestations is discussed in detail in the iii-th lesson from the very beginning - I must say, there is a lot.

e in unstressed syllable reads approximately like the German "ö" - like the letter "e" in the word Möbius: menu [menu], regarder [regarde]. In order to produce this sound, you need to stretch your lips forward with a bow (as in the picture below) and at the same time pronounce the letter "e".

In the middle of words in an open syllable, this letter is thrown out at all during pronunciation (e is fluent). So, for example, the word carrefour (crossroad) is read as [kar"fur] (unstressed "ё" in the middle of the word is not pronounced). It will not be a mistake to read it [carrefour], but when you speak quickly, it drops out, as it turns out to be a weak sound Épicerie (grocery) reads like [epis "ri]. Madeleine- [Madeleine].

Madeleine metro station in Paris

And so - in many words. But you shouldn't be scared - weak "e" will fall out on their own, because it's natural :)

We also have this phenomenon in speech, we just don’t think about it. For example, the word "head": when we pronounce it, the first vowel is so weak that it falls out, and we practically do not pronounce it and say [head]. I'm not talking about the word "eleventh", which we pronounce as [eleventh] (I found this in my son's notebook; at first I was horrified: how could so many mistakes be made in one word, and then I realized that the child simply wrote down this word by ear - we really pronounce it that way :).

e at the end of words (see exceptions below) is not readable (it is sometimes pronounced in songs and poems). If there are any icons above it, it is always readable, no matter where it stands. For example: régime [mode], rosé [rose] - rose wine.

In single words e at the end of words it is read - if you don’t read it there, you won’t form a syllable at all. These are articles, prepositions, pronouns, demonstrative adjectives: le [le], de [de], je [zhe], me [me], ce [se].

Unreadable ending -s, which forms the plural of nouns (something familiar, right?) and adjectives, if it appears, does not make a letter -e at the end of the word readable: régime and régimes are read the same way - [mode].

-er at the ends of words is read as "e": conférenci er[entertainer] - speaker, ateli er[atelier], dossi er[dossier], canotier, collier, croupier, portier and finally foyer [foyer]. You will find -er at the end of all regular verbs: parl er[parle] - to talk, mang er[mange] - is; -er is the standard ending for French regular verbs.

a- reads like "a": valse [waltz].

i(including with icons) - reads like "and": vie [vi] - life (quickly remember "C" est la vie" :).

o- reads like "about": locomotive [locomotive], compote[compote] - fruit puree.

u reads like "yu" in the word "muesli". Example: cuvette reads [cuvette] and means "cuvette", parachute [parachute] - means "parachute" :), the same happens with purée (mashed potatoes), and c configuration(jam).

To get an open sound "u", a combination is used ou(this is familiar from English: you, group [group], router [router], tour [tour]). Souvenir [souvenir] - memory, fourchette [buffet] - fork, carrefour [carrefour] - crossroads; pronouns nous (we) read [well], vous (you and you) read [woo].

Consonants

Letter l it is read softly: étoile [etoile] - star, table [table] - table, banal [banal] - banal, canal [channel], carnaval [carnival].

g reads like "g", but before e, i and y it is read as "zh". For example: général - read [general], régime [mode], agiotage [hype]. A good example is the word garage - it reads [garage] - the first g before a is read firmly, and the second g before e- like "w".

letter combination gn reads like [n] - for example, in the name of the city Cognac[cognac] - Cognac, in the words champi gn ons [champignon] - mushrooms, champa gn e [champagne] - champagne, lor gn ette [lorgnette] - binoculars.

c read as "to", mas ca rade [masquerade], already mentioned by us co mpote and cu vette. But before three vowels e, i and y it is read as "s". For example: ce rtificat reads [certificate], vélo ci pède - [bike], moto cy cle - [motorcycle].

If you need to change this behavior, that is, to make this letter read like [s] before other vowels, a ponytail is attached to it at the bottom: Ç and ç . Ça is read as [sa]; garçon [garcon] - boy, maçon (mason), façon (style), façade (facade). The famous French greeting Comment ça va [koma ~ sa va] (or more often just ça va) - means "how are you", but literally "how it goes". In films you can see - they say hello like that. One asks: "Ça va?", the other answers: "Ça va, ça va!".

At the ends of words c is rare. Unfortunately, there is no hard and fast rule when it is read and when it is not. It is simply remembered for each word - there are few of them: for example, blanc [bl "en] - white, estomac [estoma] - stomach and tabac[taba] is not readable, but cognac and avec are readable.

Combination ch gives the sound [w]. For example, chance [chance] - luck, luck, chantage [blackmail], cliché [cliche], cache-nez [muffler] - scarf (literally: hides the nose);

ph reads like "f": photo. th reads like "t": théâtre [theater], thé [those] - tea.

p reads like Russian "p": portrait [portrait]. In the middle of the word, the letter p before t is not readable: sculpture [skultyur].

j- reads like Russian "zh": bonjour [bonjour] - hello, jalousie [blinds] - envy, jealousy and blinds, sujet [plot] - plot.

s reads like Russian "s": geste [gesture], régisseur [director], chaussée [highway]; between two vowels s sounds and reads like "z": fuselage [fuselage], limousine [limousine] - very intuitive. If it is necessary to make s deaf between vowels, it is doubled. Compare: poison [poison] - poison, and poisson [poison] - fish; the same Hennessy - [ansi].

The rest of the consonants (how many of them are left? :) - n, m, p, t, x, z- read more or less clearly. Some small features of reading x and t will be described separately - rather for order. Well and n and m in combination with vowels give rise to just a whole class of sounds that will be described in a separate, most interesting section.

Here is a list of the words given above as examples - before doing the exercise, it is better to listen to how the French pronounce these words.

menu, regarder, carrefour, régime, rosé, parler, cuvette, parachute, confiture, souvenir, fourchette, nous, vous, étoile, table, banal, canal, carnaval, général, valse, garage, cognac, champignons, champagne, certificat, chance, théâtre, thé, portrait, sculpture, bonjour, sujet, geste, chaussée.