You write more than you hear
French keeps many letters in spelling that are never pronounced, above all at the end of a word. That is why written French can look so different from spoken French.
Silent endings
vous
[[vu]]
you
-s
petit
[[pəti]]
small
-t
grand
[[ɡʁɑ̃]]
big
-d
deux
[[dø]]
two
-x
chez
[[ʃe]]
at, by
-z
beaucoup
[[boku]]
a lot
-p
table
[[tabl]]
table
-e
The exception - CaReFuL
Four consonants are often pronounced at the end of a word: C, R, F, L. Think of the English word careful. It is a rule of thumb, not a law: the r of an infinitive in -er stays silent, so parler sounds like [paʁle].
Pronounced final consonants
avec
[[avɛk]]
with
pour
[[puʁ]]
for
chef
[[ʃɛf]]
boss, chef
animal
[[animal]]
animal
Verbs - one sound, several spellings
In -er verbs the endings -e, -es and -ent are silent. So parle, parles and parlent all sound the same: [paʁl]. The subject pronoun tells you who is acting, so say it clearly. il parle and ils parlent even sound completely identical.
je parle
[[ʒə paʁl]]
I speak
tu parles
[[ty paʁl]]
you speak
il parle
[[il paʁl]]
he speaks
ils parlent
[[il paʁl]]
they speak
The silent -e makes the consonant audible
A final -e is not pronounced. But it means the consonant before it is no longer at the end of the word, so that consonant is heard. This is why masculine and feminine forms often differ only in their last sound.
Hear masculine and feminine
grand
[[ɡʁɑ̃]]
big (masc.)
grande
[[ɡʁɑ̃d]]
big (fem.)
petit
[[pəti]]
small (masc.)
petite
[[pətit]]
small (fem.)
The plural -s is silent
For most nouns, singular and plural sound the same. You hear the plural only through the article.
le chat – les chats
[[lə ʃa] – [le ʃa]]
the cat – the cats
la maison – les maisons
[[la mɛzɔ̃] – [le mɛzɔ̃]]
the house – the houses
The h is silent
In French words the letter h is not pronounced. Unlike English hotel, French hôtel starts with a vowel sound.
homme
[[ɔm]]
man
heure
[[œʁ]]
hour, o’clock
hôtel
[[otɛl]]
hotel
Put it together
Ils parlent beaucoup.
[[il paʁl boku]]
They talk a lot.
Elle est petite, il est grand.
[[ɛlɛ pətit ilɛ ɡʁɑ̃]]
She is small, he is big.
Le chat est dans le jardin.
[[lə ʃa ɛ dɑ̃ lə ʒaʁdɛ̃]]
The cat is in the garden.
