7. Phonics and Pronunciation

• What does the French phonetic alphabet help you do?

  Pronounce words accurately
• The French sound [œ] is unique and falls between "uh" and aw
• French vowel sounds are more predictable based on phonetic spelling than English.


  True
• Why does the French phonetic alphabet provide a clear guide to pronunciation?

  It aligns spelling with sound
• The French phonetic alphabet provides a clear guide to pronouncing words correctly, unlike English.


  True
• What English sound is similar to the French [a] sound?

  Short "u" in "cut"
• What kind of "r" is represented by the French [ʁ] symbol?

  A guttural "r"
• The French [i] sound is pronounced like the "ee" in "feet".


  True
• Why are certain French consonants easier to learn for English speakers?

  They are pronounced similarly
• Which syllable is stressed in the French word "bonjour"?

  The last syllable
• The French phonetic alphabet provides a clear guide to pronouncing words correctly.


  True
• Which English sound is similar to the French vowel [a]?

  Short "u" in "cut"
• The French vowel [u] is similar to the English sound in the word boot
• French syllables typically have a single consonant at the beginning
• What is the most common syllable structure in French?

  Consonant-vowel (CV)
• Why is French pronunciation easier than English pronunciation?

  Predictable stress patterns
• Mastering liason is crucial for sounding natural in French.


  True
• Which nasal vowel appears in the word "vin"?

  [ɛ̃]
• Unlike English, French diphthongs and triphthongs maintain distinct pronunciations
• The French triphthong "iau" is pronounced with the phonetic symbol [jo].

  True
• The French diphthong "ou" is formed by combining the vowel "u" as in "boot" with a slight glide
• French diphthongs and triphthongs are less frequent than in English.


  True
• Match the phonetic symbol with its corresponding sound:

  [ɑ] ↔️ "ah"

  [ʒ] ↔️ Sound in "je"
• What does the French phonetic alphabet capture that English spelling may lack?

  Unique French sounds
• Some French consonant sounds are similar to English, but subtle differences can affect pronunciation
• Most French syllables follow a simple consonant-vowel (CV) pattern
• Liason in French occurs when a word ends in a consonant and the next word begins with a vowel
• In the phrase "les amis," the final "s" is pronounced as part of the next word.


  True
• The nasal vowel [ɑ̃] sounds similar to "on" in English.

  True
• How are French diphthongs pronounced differently from English diphthongs?

  More distinctly without blending smoothly
• What is the typical stress pattern in French rhythm?

  Last syllable of each word
• Match the French phonetic symbol with its corresponding sound or English equivalent:

  [a] ↔️ Short "u" in "cut"

  [e] ↔️ As in "say"

  [ʒ] ↔️ Like the "s" in "pleasure"
• French vowel sounds differ from English in consistency
• The French vowel [u] is similar to the "oo" in boot
• The French phonetic alphabet uses symbols to represent each French sound
• The French [ʒ] sound is similar to the "s" in pleasure
• Arrange the following French vowels from the least to most open in pronunciation:

  1️⃣ [i]

  2️⃣ [e]

  3️⃣ [a]

  4️⃣ [o]

  5️⃣ [u]
• Match the French consonant with its English equivalent:

  [p] ↔️ The "p" in "pen"

  [b] ↔️ The "b" in "bed"

  [k] ↔️ The "k" in "cat"

  [g] ↔️ The "g" in "go"
• Arrange the following syllable types in French from simplest to most complex:

  1️⃣ CV

  2️⃣ CVC

  3️⃣ CCV
• Which English sound is similar to the French vowel [œ]?

  No direct equivalent