French Vowels and Nasal Sounds: A Pronunciation Guide for English Speakers

French spelling looks intimidating, but it's more regular than English once you learn the sound patterns. Vowels are the heart of it, and they're where English speakers most often go astray.

Pure vowels

English vowels tend to glide (the "o" in "go" slides into "oo"). French vowels are held steady and are shorter and tighter.

• a as in ma, like the "a" in "father" but shorter
• é as in café, a closed "ay" without the glide
• è / ê as in mère, fête, like the "e" in "bed"
• i as in ici, like "ee"
• o as in robe (open, like "off") or rose (closed)
• u as in tu, a sound with no English equivalent (see the next article)
• ou as in vous, like "oo" in "food"
• e (unstressed) as in le, petit, a weak "uh", sometimes dropped altogether

Vowel combinations

• ai / ei = è (mais, neige)
• au / eau = closed o (jaune, beau)
• eu / œu = a rounded "uh" (peur, sœur, deux)
• oi = "wa" (moi, voiture)
• oy = "wah-ee" (voyage)
• ui = "wee" (nuit, huit)
• ail / eil = "eye" (travail, soleil)

The nasal vowels

When a vowel is followed by n or m (not followed by another vowel), the vowel is nasalised: air flows through the nose, and the n or m itself isn't pronounced. French has three or four nasal vowels:

• an / am / en / em (blanc, enfant, temps): the mouth is open and rounded, roughly "ah" through the nose.
• on / om (bon, nom, maison): rounded lips, roughly "oh" through the nose.
• in / im / ain / ein / yn (vin, pain, plein): a nasal "a" as in "cat".
• un / um (un, parfum): in modern speech, often merged with the in sound.

A classic trio: un bon vin blanc ("a good white wine") contains three different nasal vowels.

When it's not nasal

If the n or m is doubled or followed by a vowel, the vowel isn't nasal: bon (nasal) but bonne (not); vin (nasal) but vinaigre (not); ami (not nasal).

Practice pairs

• bon / bonne
• vent / vaine
• un / une
• plein / pleine
• pain / panne

Tips

1. Don't let vowels glide. Say é and hold it.
2. Practise nasals without a final "n" or "g". Keep the sound in your nose.
3. Listen and repeat. Native audio matters more than description.
4. Record yourself, and compare.
5. Learn spelling patterns: once you know that eau is o, hundreds of words fall into place.

Stress and rhythm

French has no strong word stress. Syllables are fairly even, with a slight lengthening on the last syllable of a phrase.

Dictionary tip

A dictionary that shows accented letters correctly gives you the clues that pronunciation depends on: é, è, ê and ë aren't interchangeable.

Check French spellings and accents with English French Dictionary →