Sons et lettres: A Pronunciation Method for Intermediate-level French

94 French Consonants French consonants pose relatively few problems for English speakers. However, there are two particular areas which are treated differently in the two languages that merit some discussion: consonant release, and the French r . Consonant release. English speakers tend to not pronounce final consonants fully or distinctly. In words such as big , bad , tight , stop , and fun , for example, the final consonant sounds may not be fully articulated in normal speech (it is sometimes said that these consonants get “swallowed”). In continental French, pronounced final consonants should be enunciated with a distinct release of the consonant (called détente in French). This means that the point of contact is fully released, whether it be between the two lips (/p/), the upper teeth and lower lip (/f/), or the tip of the tongue and the upper teeth (/t/). Practice making a distinct contrast between the final consonants in the following English/French pairs. In the first word of each pair, the point of contact is not released, while in the second there is a slight burst of air caused by the release of the final consonant: bun/bonne , soup/soupe , debt/ dette , peel/pile , mud/mode , some/somme . The release of the final consonant in French is important because the presence or absence of the consonant often serves as a grammatical marker, signaling for example that an adjective is masculine or feminine ( petit/e ), or that a verb is singular or plural ( il vient/ils viennent ). Do not be shy about pronouncing these final consonants energetically; while it may seem strange to do so in English, it is quite normal in French. French r. The French r can be one of the most difficult sounds for English speakers, as it is a very different sound than the English r (which itself is difficult for speakers of certain languages, including French). The sounds are different because they are produced in different ways and in different areas of the mouth. The American r is produced in the middle of the mouth by raising the sides of the tongue, whereas the French r is produced in the back of the mouth by raising the back of the tongue toward the uvula (the fleshy knob that hangs down in the back of your throat). Learning to make the French r requires practice and patience. It is helpful to first locate, with your tongue, the area of the mouth where it is produced by saying “ ka, ga ” with a forceful k and g sound. As you do so, notice that the back of your tongue rises to touch the back of your mouth and momentarily block the passage of air. (You can observe this by using a small mirror and opening your mouth wide, looking at the back of your throat as you say “ ka, ga .”)