2.5: Phonétique
- Page ID
- 195172
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Vowels which are replaced by an apostrophe in the writing system are said to be elided. Elision occurs in the context of a following vowel sound. In French, only the letter "e" is elided.
Observe the following examples. Then practise saying them out loud.
Le petit enfant -> l'enfant
Je suis de Dallas. -> Je suis d'Austin.
L'ami de Pierre -> L'ami d'Alice
The pronunciation of a word in French varies depending on the words that precede or follow it. Let's consider the example of numbers and articles. In isolation, the number three (trois) is pronounced without the final consonant. The final consonant s is silent. However, when this number is followed by a noun that starts with a vowel, then you should pronounce the final s as a /z/.
trois - trois chaises - trois amis
deux - deux tables - deux étudiants
les - les stylos - les ordinateurs
un - un livre - un Américain
The pronunciation of "latent" consonants (consonants that are normally not pronounced) before a following vowel is called liaison or linking. In the examples above, liaison links the two words with the sound /z/ (ex. trois_amis) or with the sound /n/ (ex. un_Américain). The result of liaison is a regular alternation of consonant and vowel sounds (CVCV ... etc.)
Listen and repeat the following examples. Identify all cases of liaison.
| 1. | Vous habitez en Europe? |
| 2. | Ils écoutent les informations à la télé. |
| 3. | Elles adorent les Italiens et les Espagnols. |
| 4. | Vous êtes d'où? |
Pronunciation of certain numbers differs depending of whether the number is followed by nothing (pronounced in isolation), a consonant or a vowel. Listen and repeat the following example. What pattern do you notice?
| Number in isolation | Followed by a word with an initial consonant | Followed by a word with an initial vowel |
| six | six chaises | six amis |
| huit | huit livres | huit ordinateurs |
| dix | dix fenêtres | dix étudiants |
Aknowledgment: some parts of this page are partially adopted from Francais Interactif.