The following pronunciation guide using IPA symbols is forStandard French. Also known asInternational French andReceived Pronunciation (RP) French. Although it is considered snobbish by some, it is generally understood by all French speakers.
| Front | Central | Back | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NR | R | NR | R | ||
| Close | i | y | u | ||
| Close-mid | e | ø | ə | o | |
| Open-mid | ɛ ɛ̃ | œ (œ̃) | ɔ ɔ̃ | ||
| Open | a | (ɑ) ɑ̃ | |||
These tables based uponWikipedia:French phonology
| Bilabial | Labio- dental | Dental1/ Alveolar | Palato- alveolar | Palatal | Labio- palatal | Velar | Labio- velar | Uvular | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plosive | p b | t d | k g | ||||||
| Nasal | m | n | ɲ | ŋ | |||||
| Fricative | f v | s z | ʃ ʒ | ʁ | |||||
| Approximant | j | ɥ | w | ||||||
| Lateral | l |
The approximation column is a hint for beginners. In some cases it is very close, and in others it leaves something to be desired. The best method is to listen to a real French audio sample included in the book, or additional web resources (Forvo,Language Guide). In the approximations you will see that they follow the IPA symbols. For example: [a] and [ɑ] will always be [ah], [ɛ] will always be [eh], [i] will always be [ee], etc. Also there is a superscript [(n)] for a nasal on the syllable. Do not read it to mean an "n" sounding nasal, but rather a symbol to indicate nasalization on the preceding syllable.
A note to beginners, is that there are many dialects of French language. Northern, or Parisian French will sound most like the examples, while Canadian and Southern French may be unrecognizable. The web siteForvo has many examples of non-IPA sounding French words, and when you see where they live you should become aware why they pronounce it different. An example would be Mississippi English compared to Bronx English. The web siteLanguage Guide has many examples of perfect Northern/Parisian French.
The student should be cautious of French songs also. Many French singers will change the pronunciation to perform a rhyme. Main (hand) may sound wrong, but the singer is rhyming it with Américain, and thus may leave off the nasal emphasis.
The French "ill" (IPA 'j') is a difficult pronunciation. Fille, Marseille, Mireille, Guillotine, etc., are sometimes exaggerated with a "yuh" sound by teachers. By describing it as "Fee-yuh, Mahr-seh-yuh, Mee-reh-yuh, or Gee-yuhoh-teen" puts too much emphasis on the "yuh." The best way to describe it, is to let the "uh" roll-off your breathe as a nasal.
An excellent external resource is| 2019 DRAFT French Official IPA Chart and| French Pronunciation.
| IPA | Example | Approximation | |
|---|---|---|---|
| /m/ | [mjɛl] | miel | myehl |
| /n/ | [nu] | nous | noo |
| /ɲ/ | [aɲo] | agneau | ah-gnoh |
| /ŋ/ | [paʁkiŋ] | parking | pahr-keeng |
| /p/ | [po] | peau | poh |
| /b/ | [bo] | beau | boh |
| /t/ | [tu] | tout | too |
| /d/ | [du] | doux | doo |
| /k/ | [kø] | queue | kew |
| /ɡ/ | [ɡɛ̃] | gain | ga(n) |
| /f/ | [fu] | fou | foo |
| /v/ | [vu] | vous | voo |
| /s/ | [su] | sous | soo |
| /z/ | [zɛ̃] | zain | za(n) |
| /ʃ/ | [ʃu] | chou | shoo |
| /ʒ/ | [ʒu] | joue | zhoo |
| /l/ | [lu] | loup | loo |
| /ʁ/ | [ʁu] | roue | roo |
| IPA | Example | Approximation | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oral vowels | |||
| /i/ | [si] | si | see |
| /e/ | [se] | ses | say |
| /ɛ/ | [sɛ] | sait | seh |
| /ɛː/ | [fɛːt] | fête | feht |
| /ə/ | [sə] | ce | suh |
| /œ/ | [sœʁ] | sœur | suhr |
| /ø/ | [sø] | ceux | sew (like dew) |
| /y/ | [sy] | su | sew (rounded lips) |
| /u/ | [su] | sous | soo |
| /o/ | [so] | sot | soh |
| /ɔ/ | [sɔːʁ] | sort | sohr |
| /a/ | [sa] | sa | sah |
| /ɑ/ | [pɑːt] | pâte | paht |
| Nasal vowels | |||
| /ɑ̃/ | [sɑ̃] | sans | sah(n) (like ball nasalized) |
| /ɔ̃/ | [sɔ̃] | son | soh(n) |
| /œ̃/ | [bʁœ̃] | brun | bruh(n) |
| /ɛ̃/ | [bʁɛ̃] | brin | bra(n) (like than nasalized) |
| semi-vowel | Example | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| IPA | Orthography | Approximations | |
| semi-vowels | |||
| /j/ | [nje] | nier | |
| /j/ | [fi.j] | fille | fee-yuh |
| /w/ | [lwe] | louer | |
| /ɥ/ | [tɥe] | tuer | oo (rounded lips) |