Les voyelles moyennes
Native English speakers often have problems differentiating between [e]-[ɛ], [ø]-[œ], and [o]-[ɔ]. The main distinction to be made here is that the first vowel of each of these pairs is more closed than the second, meaning that the mouth is not as open.
Furthermore, when compared to similar vowel sounds of English, the French vowel is always pure and constant. Compare and repeat the pronunciation of the following:
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[e]-[ɛ]
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parlé-parlais
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premier-première
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thé-thème
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boulanger-boulangère
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[ø]-[œ]
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chanteuse-chanteur
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heureuse-heure
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peut-peuvent
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neutre-neuf
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[o]-[ɔ]
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dodo-dormir
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pauvre-Hanovre
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(le) nôtre-notre
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gauffre-coffre
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Now repeat the following phrases being careful to distinguish the vowel pairs.
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[e]-[ɛ]
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Chez l'
é
tudiant typique il y a un t
é
l
é
phone, une
é
tag
è
re, une poub
e
lle, un r
é
frig
é
rateur, une cuisini
è
re et des toil
e
ttes.
|
|
[ø]-[œ]
|
|
Ma s
oeu
r a p
eu
r des jeunes fl
eu
rs. Elle a un p
eu
mal aux y
eu
x et au c
oeu
r quand il pl
eu
t le j
eu
di.
|
|
[o]-[ɔ]
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|
L'
eau
est bonne. Le bat
eau
arrive au p
o
rt. Un h
o
mme avec un chap
eau
attend en s
o
rtant son b
o
l plein de car
o
ttes.
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Aknowledgment: some parts of this page are partially adopted from
Francais Interactif
.