French Pronunciation

Articles Index

Euphony - French Pronunciation
In French, there are rules about maintaining euphony; that is, agreeable or harmonious sound. French is a very musical language because it tends to flow from one word to the next with no hiatus (pause). In situations where euphony doesn't happen naturally, French requires that sounds be added or words changed.

Assimilation - French Pronunciation
Assimilation is a pronunciation phenomenon which causes consonant sounds to change according to the sounds that surround them. More specifically, assimilation occurs when voiced and unvoiced sounds are combined. Because it can be difficult to pronounce voiced and unvoiced sounds together, one or the other is assimilated: either a normally voiced consonant becomes unvoiced or a normally unvoiced consonant becomes voiced.

Top 10 French Pronunciation Mistakes and Difficulties
Many students find that pronunciation is the hardest part of learning French. The new sounds, the silent letters, the liaisons... they all combine to make speaking French very tricky. By listening to French as much as possible, and by studying and practicing the pronunciation aspects that you find most difficult, you can do a lot to improve your pronunciation. Here is a list of the top French pronunciation difficulties and mistakes, with links to detailed lessons and sound files.