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Irrespective of your present degree, in some unspecified time in the future whereas studying French you’ve in all probability seen letters that resemble English ones, solely with unfamiliar markings above them (and generally beneath them). It could possibly be the é in la télévision (the tv), the â in âge (age), or the ç in commerçant (shopkeeper).
Rookies could merely gloss over these when studying, viewing them as “non-compulsory”. Nonetheless, there’s nothing non-compulsory about accent marks. They assist us perceive how we should always pronounce sure letter sounds and the place we should always add extra emphasis! In some circumstances, they will even change the that means of a phrase.
Whereas it’s tempting to keep away from studying accents, you’ll discover that studying them alongside the fundamentals makes every part simpler, from writing to studying new vocabulary. Rosetta Stone will help you study accent marks in a enjoyable, participating atmosphere that enhances your retention. Try our distinctive immersion strategy to studying, or leap proper right into a subscription right now!
What are the 5 accent marks?
There are 5 accent marks you’ll want to acknowledge in French.
- l’accent aigu (the acute accent)—Ex: é
- l’accent grave (the grave accent)—Ex: è
- l’accent circonflexe (the circumflex)—Ex: ô
- l’accent tréma (the trema)—Ex: ï
- la cédille (the cedilla)—Ex: ç
Why are accent marks necessary in French?
French accent marks generally perform as they do in Spanish, putting emphasis on a sure syllable of a phrase. Nonetheless, as at all times, there are exceptions! The truth is, most French accents do extra than simply that, or one thing else completely. Some accent marks in French, just like the acute accent, change the pronunciation of the letter altogether. Others, just like the grave accent, solely barely modify the sound of it. At different instances, there isn’t any emphasis or pronunciation change in any respect, as is the case with a number of the usages of the circumflex.
Regardless of the goal could also be, figuring out French accent mark guidelines can forestall miscommunication, because the together with them could produce phrases of various that means, reminiscent of côte (coast) and côté (facet).
The pronunciation and goal of every accent mark varies, and within the sections beneath we are going to break every of those down. Earlier than continuing although, we should first ensure we’ve got a stable grasp of the French alphabet, and are in a position to produce the sounds of every letter in it accurately. So, brush up on that earlier than studying extra!
Understanding French pronunciation
Pronunciation is among the issues which makes French a difficult language to study, even in comparison with its Latin friends like Spanish. Marked by numerous sounds distinctive solely to itself, greedy French pronunciation is among the largest challenges for English audio system (and even Spanish and Italian ones too).
Although many of the letters are the identical, many are pronounced with a minimum of a slight diploma of distinction between their English counterparts. For instance, pondering of the French “E” just like the English one will produce errors that impede one’s skill to speak. The additional modification of this “E” sound by accent marks solely will increase the phonetic variations between the 2 languages.
On a optimistic be aware, French accent marks are simple to study as soon as one has achieved an understanding of the alphabet. What’s extra, Rosetta stone’s Alphabet device is a superb useful resource for studying or refreshing oneself on the French alphabet, accent marks included. It not solely helps learners perceive how letters are pronounced in isolation, however gives a wide range of examples to place them into context.
Which letters take accent marks in French?
Except the cédille, solely vowels take accent marks. Under is an inventory of letters that may undertake every accent.
- l’accent aigu: “E” (é)
- l’acccent grave: “A”, “E”, and “U” (à, è, ù)
- l’accent circonflexe: “A”, “E”, “I”, “O”, “U” (â, ê, î, ô, û)
- le tréma: “E”, “I”, “U” (ë, ï, ü)
- la cédille: “C” (ç)
The 5 varieties of French accent marks
Under is a sequence of tables for every of the 5 accent marks in French with examples.
1. Cedilla (la cédille)
The cedilla’s major goal is to differentiate the fricative “S” sound of the letter “C” from its velar “Ok” sound. In different phrases, to differentiate the “S” sound in phrases like “site” from the “Ok” sound in phrases like “okite”. In French, a “C” will be pronounced like a “Ok” or like an “S ” relying on the presence of the cedilla. Phrases with a cedilla are pronounced like an “S”.
So, in phrases like le mâcon (mâcon, wine from Burgundy) the “C” is pronounced like a “Ok”, whereas in phrases like un maçon (a bricklayer, mason) it’s pronounced like an “S”. Phrases like glaçon (ice dice) are pronounced like “glasson”, whereas phrases like laconique (no cedilla) are pronounced as “lakoneek(uh)”.
The cedilla can also be used prior to now participle of sure verbs just like the “conçu” (conceived) of concevoir (to conceive). At different instances it may be used to differentiate an “S” sound from a “Ok” in conjugated types of verbs, reminiscent of the primary particular person plural conjugation of commencer (to start), commençons [(we) begin]. The identical applies to recevoir (to obtain). Nonetheless, all types of recevoir take the cedilla apart from the primary particular person plural nous and the second particular person plural/formal vous. Thus (je) reçois, (tu) reçois, (il/elle/on) reçoit, and (ils/elles) reçoivent all undertake the cedilla to make clear any confusion as to the proper pronunciation of the letter “C”.
| French | English |
| ça | that |
| commençons | (we) start |
| déçu | dissatisfied |
| la façade | the entrance of a constructing |
| la façon | a method, type (of doing one thing) |
| le français | French (language) |
| un garçon | a boy |
| une leçon | a lesson |
| provençal | provincial |
| reçu | obtained (previous participle) |
2. Acute accent (l’accent aigu)
The acute accent is used to differentiate the standard pronunciation of the letter “E” from the “AY” sound in phrases like cérémonie. The distinction between the “E” and the é is heard in phrases like un competition (a competition) and félicitations (congratulations). This sound resembles the sound of the letter “A” within the English alphabet. Nonetheless, this analogy is merely approximate.
There’s a slight distinction between é and “A”, however pondering of it this manner ought to get most English audio system off to begin. Its use additionally extends to verb varieties, because the é is the ending for normal -ER verbs prior to now tense like parler (to talk) donner (to provide), and habiter (to dwell/reside). Observe: the letters in parentheses point out the female endings of adjectives.
| French | English |
| une allée | a path, aisle, or walkway. |
| le café | the espresso |
| défait(e) | defeated |
| donné(e) | gave/given (previous participle of “to provide”) |
| éternel(le) | everlasting |
| la journée | the day (within the sense of the size of a day) |
| le marché | the market |
| se méfier | to be suspicious of |
| le passé | the previous |
| la soirée | the night (within the sense of size) |
3. Circumflex (l’accent circonflexe)
You may need observed the circumflex in your first day of French within the phrase plaît within the phrase s’il vous plaît. The plaît right here is within the third particular person singular (il/elle/on) conjugation of the verb plaire (to please).
At instances the circumflex serves the needs of marking the place an “S” as soon as stood in previous French. Phrases like “être” (to be), and “l’hôpital” (hospital) as soon as had an “S” after the vowel with the circumflex, thus being pronounced like “estre” and “l’hospital.” It will probably additionally point out the place the letter Omega (ω) as soon as stood in its Greek phrase of origin, as within the phrase un diplôme (a diploma) which comes from the Greek “δίπλωμα” (theeploma).
French audio system now both pronounce the vowel as they’d usually, or barely elongate its sound, as is the case for phrases like l’hâte (haste, hurry) or mûr (ripe). In sure phrases although it tells us to shorten and intensify the vowel sound, reminiscent of with être (to be), un forêt (a forest), and l’intérêt (an curiosity).
Observe: The presence or absence of those accent marks illustrates the purpose touched on earlier about how accent marks can change the that means of a phrase altogether, such is the case right here with mûr (ripe) and un mur (a wall). The identical applies to the distinction between une tâche (a activity) and une tache (a stain).
| French | English |
| un ancêtre | an ancestor |
| un château | a citadel or château |
| le côte | the coast |
| coûter | to price |
| un forêt | a forest |
| un mâchoir | a jaw |
| mâchonner | to chew |
| les pâtes | pasta |
| rôtir | to roast |
| une tâche | a activity |
4. Grave accent (l’accent grave)
The grave accent serves two functions:
- To change the sound of the letter “E” in an effort to produce a brief “ai” sound just like the phrase “air”.
- To tell apart the that means (NOT the pronunciation) of homophones (phrases that sound the identical). For instance, “la” (particular, female, singular article) and “là” (there). Equally, ou (or) and où (the place).
Exterior of those makes use of the grave accent has no change in sound. For instance, when utilized to the phrase déjà (already), the sound of the letter à doesn’t change.
| French | English |
| à | to, at, in |
| déjà | already |
| dernière | final ( earlier or last in succession, female type of adj.) |
| l’ère | period |
| une espèce | a species, form, kind |
| un frère | a brother |
| une grève | a strike (e.g. employee’s strike) |
| une lèvre | a lip |
| une pièce | a play, a room, a bit/half, or a coin |
| très | very |
5. Trema (l’accent tréma)
The trema has a really easy perform, particularly to differentiate a given vowel sound from people who encompass it. Although not as frequent because the earlier classes of accents, it’s essential for proper pronunciation. For instance, the phrase maïs tells us to pronounce the letter “I” individually from the letter “A” with the identical shut “I” sound discovered within the phrase marine in English. We pronounce it as we might within the alphabet, in order that maïs feels like “ma-ees.” That is what distinguishes it from the conjunction mais (no trema over the “I”) that means “however.”
Equally within the phrase “canoë” we pronounce the “E” separate from the “O” sound to say “cano-way.” As at all times, figuring out our French grammar guidelines regarding gender settlement of adjectives helps us perceive which type of a phrase to make use of. For instance, in phrases like aiguë the ë not solely adjustments the pronunciation, but in addition signifies the female type of the adjective aigue (acute).
| French | English |
| un canoë | a canoe |
| le caraïbe | the caribbean |
| laïc/laïque | secular (m./f.) |
| naïf/naïve | naive (m./f.) |
| le Noël | Christmas |
| maïs | corn |
| stoïque | stoic |
Find out how to kind French accent marks
Hopefully you discover studying how one can pronounce the accent marks comparatively simple. Nonetheless, one thing that may be tougher is studying how one can use the French AZERTY keyboard. English audio system use the QWERTY one, with QWERTY being the top-most letters from left-right, whereas in France the top-most letters are AZERTY. Studying the French AZERTY keyboard and the corresponding accent marks are essential for environment friendly typing.
With the rising significance of typing and texting in right now’s world, studying the keyboard of various languages is simply as necessary as with the ability to correctly learn and hand write. Simply as we wouldn’t copy and paste all the assorted punctuation marks when texting, writing emails, or typing blogs in English, we likewise wouldn’t achieve this with accent marks in French. In time, you would possibly discover toggling between QWERTY and AZERTY keyboard no completely different than toggling between the 2 languages themselves!
Usually, Macs and PCs can have their keyboard settings modified to permit simple back-and-forth between completely different keyboards. On some PCs one may need to obtain the keyboard although. Each typically additionally include a visible assist for the consumer to see the place the completely different accent and letter marks are. Alternatively one can use the “Insert” perform on Microsoft Phrase and Google docs, however that is time intensive for the common typer.
For a “translation” of what keys to kind in your QWERTY keyboard to realize the related accent marks within the AZERTY one, seek the advice of the desk beneath.
| AZERTY | QWERTY |
| é | 2 |
| è | 7 |
| ç | 9 |
| à | 0 |
| â, î, ô, ê, û | [ + vowel |
| ù | ‘ |
You’ll probably notice that most of the accent marks are achieved by pressing on the numerical keys (1-0) and might be wondering how to type numbers. For this, it’s as easy as pressing “Shift + number”. So, to type “1” we press “Shift + 1”, “2” is “Shift + 2”, “3” “Shift + 3”, and so on.
When it comes to the trema, it can be a bit more complicated. For some macs using the hotkey of “Option-u + vowel” will work. Similarly, on a PC: ” + vowel might work. Some computers might require a user to manually set this hotkey themselves. If you aren’t able to access it with your AZERTY keyboard or hot keys, don’t worry. It’s not as common as the other accents so typically one can get by with either long pressing the key until the accent shows up, or by inserting it in a document then copying and pasting. Alternatively, if you have your keyboard settings set to French, auto-correct might do it for you!
Due to the peculiarities of the AZERTY keyboard, it isn’t always the case that accented letters are capitalized. However, it is important to know that the Academie Française proclaims that accented letters must be capitalized (which is one argument for updating or switching keyboards currently). So, though not necessary when typing, keeping this in mind for one’s handwriting is essential for retaining “official French”.
How to type French accents on a Mac
As with PCs, on Mac’s the user can copy/paste or use the “Insert” function on Microsoft Word or Google docs. One can also long press the desired key and choose from the range of accent marks that appear. However, these are not time-saving options for the consistent French language typer. Changing keyboards on a Mac is relatively straight forward. Mostly, one should be able to simply click on “system preferences” from the Launchpad, then “keyboard”, “input sources”, “+”, then one’s choice of French (there are several choices based on the region and purpose of one’s use).
For continental French, it should simply read “French”. You should then see the language with its corresponding flag and abbreviation (“FR” for French) in the task bar. You can click on it to change it, or simply press “CTRL + Spacebar” to toggle between French and the language you’re currently using. After that, it’s “simply” a matter of memorizing the keys! Don’t worry, you’ll be surprised what your muscle memory is capable of with enough practice!
How to type French accents on a PC
Switching keyboards on a PC might follow a similar path to that of a Mac. If one is using Windows 7 or Vista, on the “Keyboard and Language” tab in the search engine of the “Start Menu”, click “Change language”. Click “add” then choose the suitable version of French then “Ok” in the “Regional and Language options”. You should see “FR” for French in the language taskbar.
For Windows XP click ”Start”, “Run Box”, “Details” on the Language tab, “Add” (under “Installed Services”) then choose your desired French from the options in “Language Input”, then choose the appropriate keyboard lay out (AZERTY is best if it’s presented as an option). Some PCs or Windows versions may require you to download the keyboard, which is relatively quick and easy. Either way, finding a way to toggle to a AZERTY keyboard is necessary for common communication in a language such as French which demands the use of accent marks.
For other alternatives and further instructions on changing one’s keyboard settings for accent marks, click here.
Master French pronunciation with Rosetta Stone
Accent marks are the keys to unlocking correct pronunciation in French. As you come across new vocabulary, take note of which accent marks are present and if they affect the meaning of certain words!
If you’re eager to take your French to the next level, Rosetta Stone has immersive, bite-sized lessons that can help you build your French skills on your own schedule. Plus, we can even take your pronunciation a step further with TruAccent, which gives you immediate feedback on how you sound. We have everything you need to get conversation-ready in no time.
Written by Micah McCauley
Micah McCauley is a freelance contributor to Rosetta Stone with years of experience teaching French to non-native speakers. His career spans the U.S., France, and China. He is currently a student and associate instructor of French and Francophone Studies. He enjoys composing music, traveling, and learning Spanish in his free time.
