L' ALPHABETS
The French alphabet (l'alphabet français)
(with pronunciation)
(Downloadable image)
NOTE:
- This is pronounced like J but is actually the letter G. We'll have a similar problem for J.
- The French R sound is also hard to pronounce. It's like a light gargle in the back of the mouth.
- The French U is hard to pronounce. Say 'ee' and then, keeping the shape of the inside of your mouth constant, move your lips to make the sound 'oo'. This will allow you to pronounce the French U. This also applies to the pronunciation of the letter Q
- Y Literally means Greek I.
The French alphabet has 26 letters among them 6 vowels and 20 consonants.
| Letter | Pronunciation | Examples |
|---|
| A | /ah/ - the sound in 'spa' | aller (ah-lay) means 'to go' |
| B | /beh/ - similar to 'bay' | une batte (eeoon baht) means 'a bat' |
| C | /seh/ - similar to 'say' (C or S sound) | un couteau (uh koo-toh) means 'a knife |
| D | /deh/ - similar to 'day' | dormir (dohr-meer) means 'to sleep' |
| E | /uh/ - the sound in 'wool' | les cheveux (lay shuh-vuh) means 'hair' |
| F | /eff/ - similar to English | fort (fohr) means 'strong' |
| G | /zheh/ - similar to the g in 'massage' | le gaz (luh gahz) means 'gas' |
| H | /ah-sh/ - said like 'osh' in gosh,
usually silent in French but there are a few words with an aspirated 'h' | -l'huile (lweel) means oil, and the 'h' is silent
-le haricot (luh ah-ree-koh) means 'the bean' |
| I | /ee/ - the sound in geek | finir (fee-neer) means 'to finish' |
| J | /zhee/ - similar to jhee | jouer (zhoo-ay) means 'to play' |
| K | /kah/ sounds like English (rarely used in French) | un kangourou (uh kahn-goo-roo) means kangaroo |
| L | /ell/ - sounds like English | un livre (uh lee-vruh) means 'a book' |
| M | /ehm/ - sounds like English | mon ami (moh-nahm-ee) means 'my friend' |
| N | /ehn/ - similar to English, sometimes nasal | la naissance (lah nay-ssahnss) means 'birth' |
| O | /oh/ - similar to English | un ordinateur (uh- nohr-dee-nah-tuhr) means 'a computer' |
| P | /peh/ - said like the 'pu' in 'put' | payer (pay-ay) means 'to pay' |
| Q | /keoo/ - said like KEE with rounded lips | qui (kee) means 'who' |
| R | /ehr/ - guttural throat 'r', like gargling | un renard (uh rruh-nahrr) means 'a fox' |
| S | /ess/ - usually one 's' sounds like 'z'
double 's' sounds like 's' | un poisson (uh pwah--ssohn) means 'a fish'
du poison (deeoo pwah-zohn) means 'some poison' |
| T | /teh/ - said like 'tay' | une tarte (eeoon tarr-tuh) means 'a pie' |
| U | /eew/ - said like EE with rounded lips | une ruse (eeoon reeooz) means 'a joke or trick' |
| V | /veh/ - said like 'vay' | une voiture (eeoon vwah-teeoor) means 'a car' |
| W | /doobluh veh/ - sounds similar to double vay (rarely used in French) | un wagon-lit (uh vahgohn lee) or (uh wah-gohn-lee) means a train car for sleeping |
| X | /eeks/ - similar to English | une exercise (eeoon ehks-ehr-see-ss) means 'an exercise' |
| Y | /ee grehk/ - sounds like EE then gr-ek | un yaourt (uh yah-oo-rt) means 'a yogurt' |
| Z | /zehd/ - sounds like zed | un zèbre (uh zeh-bruh) means 'a zebra' |
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