What are they?

 

Syllables are the smallest parts of words that have a continuous sound. They are made up from one vowel sound, plus associated consonants.

Since they have (very) brief pauses between them, they give a structure to words.

French syllables are mainly (78%) based on a consonant sound (C), followed by a vowel sound (V). For example the 'ta' in tabac /ta.ba/.

English syllables however are based on CVCs, so it can be a bit difficult to adjust to the French system.

French syllables are also generally unstressed throughout a word, and words are often joined to continue syllables. They do this with elision (l'aube), liaison (vous avez – the s is sounded to join), and enchainment (avec elle)  - see below. This means that the whole speech tends to follow a regular rhythm – often referred to as the ‘musicality’ of French. Some teachers actually use a metronome to encourage this in pupils.

This rhythmic style probably drives a lot of the way French is pronounced; understanding this also helps with working out how to write French (see spelling).

 

The basic pattern

 

When possible, this is:

 

CV.CV etc.

 

Sometimes the first syllable is a single vowel sound, but the rest of the word follows the pattern:

 

C.CV.CV for instance,  étalon         /e.ta.lɔ̃/

 

sometimes however, you will have to include a final consonant sound in a syllable (this is often avoided at the end of the word by making it silent).

 

faction  /fak.sjɔ̃

 

When you get two or more consonants together like this, you need to know if you need to make a break, and (if so) where it is.

 

 

Two consonants

 

In general,

 

The basic idea is to keep any two letters or consonant sounds which ‘go together'.

 

This involves:

 

Consonant digraphs

- two letters which make a single sound i.e. GN, CH, PH, RH, or TH

 

tricheur /tɹi.ʃœʁ/

 

OR

 

A hard consonant followed by a liquid

- when the first consonant is not L or R, or the two nasals M and N,

and the second consonant is L or R.

 

patron /pa.tʁɔ̃/

 

 

The break

 

When you have to split the consonants, then with two, you just go between them; with three consonants, break to leave the two with the best fit together.

exactement        /ɛɡ.zak.tə.mɑ̃/

anesthésie        /a.nɛs.te.zi/

 

 

 

 

 

Syllables are often linked across words, to maintain the rhythm of speech.

 

Linking words

 

Liaison

A normally silent ending consonant sound is sounded out and transferred to the start of the next word, when this starts with a vowel sound.

Vous avez ⇨  Vou sa vez

 

Elision

A contraction when two words are combined. Typically when the first word ends in a vowel (sometimes silent), and the second word start with a vowel sound. The first word loses its vowel and the final consonant sound joins in with the start of the second word. The missing letter is shown with an ’

La aube ⇨ l'aube

 

Enchaînement

When a word ending in a consonant which is sounded, is linked together with a second word starting with a vowel sound.

Avec elle  ⇨ a ve celle