Scribd
Upload
436 views1 page

IPA French

This document provides an overview of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) symbols used to represent sounds in the French language. It includes tables listing the IPA symbols for French vowel sounds, semi-vowel sounds, nasal vowel sounds, consonant sound pairs, and other consonant sounds. The document aims to help pronunciation of French words by providing the IPA phonetic equivalents for each letter combination.

Uploaded by

jeanm87
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
436 views1 page

IPA French

This document provides an overview of the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) symbols used to represent sounds in the French language. It includes tables listing the IPA symbols for French vowel sounds, semi-vowel sounds, nasal vowel sounds, consonant sound pairs, and other consonant sounds. The document aims to help pronunciation of French words by providing the IPA phonetic equivalents for each letter combination.

Uploaded by

jeanm87
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 1

French and the

International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)

IPA Symbol Pronunciation Examples


Vowel sounds
i keen lys, utile, lyre
e closed “e” (a lengthened is) et, aller, été, j’ai
ɛ open “e” as in pet est, mais, père
a hat parler (most common “a”)
ɑ farther bas, pâte (much rarer “a”)
ɔ soft voler, mort
o all mot, beau
u fool ou, roue
y like a German ü une, rue
ə (schwa) ahead le, demain and the mute “e” (when
enunciated) as in lune are very close to a
German schwa when spoken (see ø).
ø like a German ö peu, deux and used instead of the schwa
when sung, so le, demain and the mute “e”
œ fur heure
Semi-vowel sounds
j yes grenouille, pied, feuille
w want moi, oui, nouer
ɥ close to a passing y lui, suite
Nasal vowel sounds
ɑ̃ vent, temps, ans
ɛ̃ faim, pain, vin
No English equivalents
õ (or ɔ̃ when spoken) non, long, nom
œ̃ un, parfum
Consonant sound pairs
Voiced Unvoiced
b p bib pipe bon pain
d t dread tight adieu astre
g k gain cake gloire coin
v f vault fifty vin, wagon fin
z s gaze cease oser soir
ʒ ʃ vision shirt je, gilet chat
ʔ h glottal aspirate virtually never used except for emphasis
In French, when a word begins with an “h” such as hibou the “h” is not sounded.
’ (apostrophe) or sometimes
However there is nevertheless the concept of an aspirate “h” whose only function is to
* (asterisk)
prevent liaisons. It would be indicated in phonetic dictionaries by an apostrophe,
e.g. un_homme but un ’hibou. This is not an IPA symbol, but it is very useful when
trying to decide whether a liaison is permitted or not.
Nasal consonant sounds
m my main
n name nous
ɳ mainly in English derived words as camping
ɲ onion agneau
Other consonant sounds
l light lumière
ʀ use of the French guttural “r” when singing is a question of taste and tradition
but should be used when saying song titles or composers’ names
r single flipped “r” as might be used in Not used in spoken French but used instead
English very of ʁ when singing French classical music
x Used in imported words such as the Spanish jota

© The Mélodie Treasury – please feel free to photocopy and share this page.
www.melodietreasury.com

You might also like