French Sounds That Don’t Exist in English (And Why I’m Not Trying to Lose My Accent)

I'm never going to sound French. I know that, and honestly, I've never really wanted to. I have a strong northern English (Burnley) accent that isn't going anywhere, and I'm proud of it. It's part of my identity.

For a long time, I thought that was the problem. I thought it was why French people couldn't understand me, even when I was saying everything in grammatically perfect French. It wasn't.

The problem isn't my accent. Honestly! It's the handful of French sounds that don't exist in English, the ones that can make the difference between being understood and being met with a blank look, accent or no accent.

Your grammar is fine. Your vocabulary is fine. But something in the sounds your producing isn't quite right, and you get the blank look, or you're misunderstood.  You start questioning yourself, "What did I say wrong?  Why didn't they understand?"

Why these French sounds are so hard (it's not just you)

French has several sounds that English speakers have never had to make because they simply don't exist in English. That's why reading a word on a page doesn't prepare you to say it, and why a French teacher who's used to these errors might understand you when other French speakers don't.

Your mouth and tongue has to learn new shapes, not just new words!

Here are the sounds that trip me up, along with plenty of other English speakers.

The French u vs ou (as in tu vs tout)

This is the sound that I still can't differentiate. Say "dessus" (on top) with the wrong vowel and you've accidentally said "dessous" (underneath), the opposite meaning!  Nobody corrects you, they just look faintly confused and let it go. English speakers default to "oo" for both, causing no end of confusion!

The French R (as in rouge, bonjour)

Order a vin rouge or Perrier with an English R and you'll might have to repeat yourself, not because the waiter's being difficult, but because you've just said something that doesn't really exist to French ears. The French rolling R is closer to a soft, controlled gargle, and most french learners tend to over do it, making it sound harsh and forced.  In my case I can actually do a decent French R but I just forget to use it, I mean do I really have to make all that effort every time I come across an R?!

Nasal vowels (as in un, sans, vin, bon)

The difference is partly in the nasal vowel. French nasal vowels are produced with air flowing through the nose as well as the mouth, without adding a separate "n" or "m" sound at the end. English speakers often struggle to reproduce these sounds and fall back on familiar English pronunciation instead.

Try saying dans un an (in a year) or un bon vin blanc (a good white wine). If the nasal vowels aren't quite right, these phrases can be surprisingly difficult to get across clearly.

Eu, œu and the e of le (as in feu, soeur)

I mean, what even is this "œ"?! It's apparently called the "oe ligature", and in French it's known as "e dans l'o" (literally "e in the o"). Depending on the word, it can represent different vowel sounds, as in feu and sœur.

Honestly, writing this sentence is enough to make me want to pack up and go back to Burnley!

English speakers often replace these unfamiliar vowels with a more familiar sound, which might get them by but can make their pronunciation less clear. It's another one of those small details that can mark you out as a non-native speaker.

I, é, è (as in si, lit, midi, ville, fille)

The i is the easy one, short and crisp, close to the English "ee" but tighter. É and è are the pair that actually catches people out: é is closed, a tight, short sound with no glide at the end, while è is open, closer to the English "eh". Mix them up and you'll still be understood most of the time, but it's often the thing that makes an otherwise solid sentence sound slightly off, and it's worth getting your ear tuned to the difference.

Liaisons and dropped letters

Then there are the two things that make spoken French sound nothing like the words on the page.

Liaison: a word-final consonant that's normally silent is pronounced when the next word begins with a vowel sound. For example, les amis sounds like "lez-ami", with the S linking into the next word.

Silent letters: French has plenty of word-final consonants that aren't pronounced at all. These are letters you were taught to read but that were never meant to be spoken in those words.

You can learn every grammar rule going, but if you don't know how words connect and which letters disappear, the French in your head can still sound very different from the French coming at you in real conversation.

I hope all that hasnt scared you off! 

How to actually fix French pronunciation mistakes

It took me a long time to realise that another French exam wasn't going to solve the problem. I'd spent years learning French without ever being taught these pronunciation basics properly, even though getting a sound wrong can completely change the meaning of what you're saying. 

Reading about tongue position and watching videos helped me understand what I was doing wrong, but what’s actually helping is hearing the sounds pronounced correctly and repeating them until my mouth gets used to making them.

That's why I built Mimique, to help you practise the French sounds you struggle with, using phrases you actually need, just a few minutes a day.

And here's the important bit: you don't need to lose your accent to be understood. I haven't lost mine, and I'm not trying to. I just want to sound like me, with clearer French pronunciation. You can keep your English accent and still make yourself understood the first time. That's the goal.

Stop guessing at those tricky French sounds. Start practising them with Mimique.