If you're putting in a lot of time, effort and money to learn French, chances are that you also want to be able to SOUND it properly. If your pronunciation is poor, French people will struggle to understand you. Worse, they may understand something else - something potentially very embarrassing! To sound like a native speaker, You need to be able to hear and say every sound of the French language. Some of these sounds will be easy because they already exist in your language. Some will be different (U, R and the nasals are typical examples) You must learn how to choose the right … Read More →
FYW 169 : French pronunciation (2) – How to pronounce the letter “E” when it has an accent over it?
This is the second episode to help you with your French reading and French pronunciation and celebrate the upcoming launch of my online course, "How to sound like a native French speaker", coming out next week! Stay tuned as there will be a special, limited offer! Get updates about my upcoming course: www.frenchyourway.com.au/course Last week’s episode: "How to know when the letter "S" is pronounced [s] or [z]?": www.frenchyourway.com.au/podcast168 This time I'm answering a question from Tanya who would like to know how to pronounce the letter "E" when it has an accent over … Read More →
FYW 168 : French pronunciation (1) – How to know when the letter “S” is pronounced [s] or [z]
I'm really excited to start a short series of episodes dedicated to French pronunciation to mark the achievement of over 2 years of creating, testing and refining the online course that I’ve been working really hard on for you! "How to sound like a native French speaker - Everything you need to know about French pronunciation and intonation" will officially open on May 9th, 2018. Save the date because it will come with a special and limited offer! I'll also do a live session on Saturday May 19th, at 1.30pm (Melbourne Australia time). You can send me your questions about French … Read More →
FYW 063 : How to improve your French pronunciation: Ask Siri!
Here’s a great idea to help you work on your French pronunciation! This activity will also make you work on how to ask questions in French and on the pace of your speech: if you pause for too long, Siri will think that you were done asking your question and you will have to start again! Follow my instructions on how to make the most of this French oral activity and download the free worksheet I’ve designed for you! https://frenchyourway.com.au/improve-french-pronunciation-ask-siri Use the comment section to submit other ideas of questions to other learners of French…or just to let me … Read More →
“œ”, the French Ligature
This is the last article of a three-part series I dedicated to some French graphic signs based on this request from Oska: I would enjoy if you could also perhaps do a lesson or two in the future on other French diacritics and ligatures, e.g. the cedilla, the diaeresis (or tréma), the ligature ‘œ’. As speakers and writers of a language which does not mostly possess such ‘baroque’ written adornments, I think Anglophones (= English speakers) find them quite fascinating. And perhaps a little bit of a barrier, which explication can help overcome. In the first article, I told you everything I knew … Read More →
FYW 037 : How to Pronounce the French R
Many students struggle with the pronunciation of the French R, so in this episode I will give you some practice exercises and phonetic tips on how to pronounce the French R so that you can sound more French. Unleash the tigeRRR in you! Vocabulary and Spelling of the French Words mentioned in this episode Practice exercise : LINKS and RESOURCES Tarrawarra Estate: http://www.tarrawarra.com.au/ Did you like this podcast? You can support my work by leaving a review on iTunes. Your kind words warm my heart and also help me be found by more passionate learners of French. Merci … Read More →
The French cedilla (“cédille”)
I received the following suggestion from Oska: I would enjoy if you could also perhaps do a lesson or two in the future on other French diacritics and ligatures, e.g. the French cedilla, the diaeresis (or tréma), the ligature ‘œ’. As speakers and writers of a language which does not mostly possess such ‘baroque’ written adornments, I think Anglophones (= English speakers) find them quite fascinating. And perhaps a little bit of a barrier, which explication can help overcome. Thanks Oska, these are very interesting questions! I will actually dedicate three articles to them: Part 1 : la … Read More →
The Definitive Guide About the Word “tous” (French Grammar, French Pronunciation)
Whatever your level is in French, I bet you will learn something in this article! What’s the difference between tout / tous / toute / toutes? How and when to use them ? How to know when to pronounce the “s” at the end of “tous” in French ? – This last question comes from one of my listeners of French Your Way podcast. I have featured it in episode 14. Click here to listen to the episode. “Tout” (meaning “all” in English or sometimes “all of”, “the whole”, “the entire”, “every” etc. – you get the idea) has different spellings, such as: There’s nothing complicated or out of the … Read More →