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Pronouncing words in French: Consonants

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Consonants

In French, there are vowels and consonants as there are in English. To pronounce words confidently in French, you need to know which sounds they make.

Most consonants make a similar sound to English – b, c, d, f, g, k, l, m, n, p, s, t, v, w, x, y and z.

Let’s look at the ones which are different. Have a go at saying them out loud.

Single consonants

  1. h

This consonant is always silent, which means you don't say the h at the beginning of words in French.

– happy
– the man
– the hotel

  1. j

The sound of this letter is like the s in the English word 'television'.

– a skirt
– yellow

  1. q and qu

These letters make the same sound as a letter c or k in English, like the c in cat.

– four
– five
– the croque-monsieur

  1. r, rr

This letter makes a sound which is not in the English language. It sounds as if you are gargling water. It comes from the back of the throat and sounds longer than the r sound in English.

– pink
– the park

Consonants followed by vowels

When followed by certain letters, these consonants make different sounds to English:

  1. c

A c before e, i or y and ç makes a s sound.

– the cinema
– the ice cream

Also the same sound as when ‘c’ is written before e, i or y

  1. g

A g before e, i or y makes the sound like s in television.

– a giraffe
– a monkey

When written before e, i or y

  1. s between vowels

An s between vowels makes an English z sound.

– pink
– the house
– the shop
– a shirt

  1. x before a vowel

An x before a vowel or silent h makes an English z sound.

– she has two children

Double consonants

These double consonants make a different sound to English:

  1. ch

These letters make the same sound as the English for sh.

– a cat
– a horse

  1. gn

These letters make the sound similar to that in the middle of the English word onion. This sounds like n followed by y.

– cute
– the lamb

  1. ll

After the letter i, these letters make the English y sound.

– the family

  1. th

These letters make the same sound as t in English.

– the tea

Silent consonants

Most consonants at the end of words aren't pronounced. These are called silent letters. For example d, p, s, t, x, z are silent at the end of a word.

– a lot
– the cat
– the children
– happy

However, be CaReFuL with the letters c, r, f and l as they can sometimes be sounded.

– the bag
– the day
– nine
– Christmas

Watch the video below to find out more about silent letters in French.

Liaison

In sentences, two words can sometimes sound like one, as the end of one word is linked to the next word by sounding the silent letter. This is called liaison.

The letters d, n, s, t, x and z can be sounded when the next word starts with a vowel or a h. Remember that s and x will sound like a z sound if followed by a vowel.

Can you hear the difference in these phrases?

– two
– she has two children

– three
– he has three children

– good
– he is a good friend

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