14 oral and 4 nasal vowel sounds in French
French has 14 oral vowel sounds (not just letters), and 4 nasal vowel sounds. Let’s break it down simply:
1. Oral Vowels (les voyelles orales) – 14
These are vowels you pronounce through the mouth only, without nasal resonance.
| Symbol (IPA) | Example Word | Hint (English approximation) |
|---|---|---|
| i | si (yes) | like “see” |
| e | été (summer) | like “play” but shorter and tenser |
| ɛ | mère (mother) | like “bed” |
| a | patte (paw) | similar to “cat” |
| ɑ (rare) | pâte (paste) | like “father” (in British English) |
| u | lune (moon) | no exact English sound; rounded “ee” |
| o | eau (water) | like “go” but more closed |
| ɔ | porte (door) | like “thought” or British “hot” |
| y | tu (you) | rounded lips + “ee” sound |
| ø | peu (little) | rounded lips + “ay” sound |
| œ | sœur (sister) | rounded + “uh” (like bird in British) |
| ə | le (the) | the weak “uh” (called schwa) |
| ɑ̃ | sans (without) | nasalized version of “ɑ” |
| ɛ̃ | pain (bread) | nasalized version of “ɛ” |
The vowels ɑ̃, ɛ̃, œ̃, ɔ̃ are nasal vowels, explained below.
2. Nasal Vowels (les voyelles nasales) – 4
Air goes through nose + mouth.
| Symbol (IPA) | Example | Hint |
|---|---|---|
| ɑ̃ | sans (without) | like “song” but nasal |
| ɛ̃ | pain (bread) | like “bank” (but nasal) |
| œ̃ | un (one) | hard to match in English |
| ɔ̃ | nom (name) | like “long” but nasal |
Important:
French vowels are pure and tense, not diphthongs like in English. That means one clear sound, no glide.
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