Learn the French alphabet, notice accent marks, and start matching letters to sounds.
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Before anything else, French has to become pronounceable. This lesson gives you the alphabet, the five accents, and the silent-letter rules that explain why French looks so different from how it sounds.
Grammar focus: The French alphabet, accents, and how letters sound. Work through the explanations and tables below, study the real examples, then lock the structures in with the interactive drills, the writing task, and the speaking task.
Beginner reference
Tap any letter name to hear it. Practice in small groups first, then spell short French words slowly.
Grammar focus
French uses the same 26 letters as English, but several letters carry accent marks that change the sound or the meaning of a word. The five accents are: the accent aigu (é), the accent grave (è, à, ù), the accent circonflexe (ê, â, î, ô, û), the tréma (ë, ï, ü), and the cédille (ç).
The accent aigu appears only on e (é) and makes the sound "ay" as in café. The accent grave on è gives an open "eh" sound (mère, père); on à and ù it does not change the sound but distinguishes words: a (has) vs à (to), ou (or) vs où (where). The cédille (ç) makes c sound like "s" before a, o, u: français, garçon. The circonflexe often marks a letter that was once followed by s (hôpital ↔ hospital) and the tréma means two vowels are pronounced separately: Noël.
| Accent | Example | Effect on sound |
|---|---|---|
| é — accent aigu | café, été, parlé | closed "ay" sound |
| è — accent grave | mère, très, après | open "eh" sound |
| ê — circonflexe | fête, être, forêt | open "eh"; often a lost historic s |
| ç — cédille | français, ça, garçon | c pronounced "s" before a, o, u |
| ë / ï — tréma | Noël, maïs | the two vowels are said separately |
Most final consonants are silent in French: petit ends in the sound "ti", grand in "gran". Final e is usually silent too: madame sounds like "madam". The main exceptions are final c, r, f, l (think of the word CaReFuL): avec, bonjour, neuf, mal. The letter h is always silent: l'hôtel.
Writing French without accents (cafe, très, français).
Treat accents as part of the spelling: café, très, français.
Accents can change meaning (a/à, ou/où) and an unaccented word is simply misspelled.
Pronouncing final consonants as in English (saying the t in "petit").
Drop most final consonants; keep c, r, f, l (CaReFuL).
Silent finals are one of the biggest differences between French spelling and sound.
Confusing é and è because they look similar.
é = closed "ay" (été); è = open "eh" (père). Say a pair aloud each day.
The two sounds distinguish real words: poignée vs poignet sound different.
Comment ca s'écrit, Lea ?
L'E A. Et toi, tu t'appelles comment ?
Observe les lettres, puis écoute la différence entre e, e accent aigu et e accent grave.
Je comprends mieux quand je répète le mot et quand je l'épelle lentement.
Écoute une fois, puis coupe le mot en syllabes pour mieux sentir le rythme.
Quand je parle plus lentement, la prononciation devient plus claire et plus stable.
La base ne doit pas être parfaite; elle doit être reutilisable chaque jour.
Je préfère une phrase utile bien dite plutôt qu'une longue phrase confuse.
aujourd'hui, on réutilise bonjour et merci dans une petite situation de alphabet and sounds et pronunciation.
Je commence avec une phrase courte, puis j'ajoute un détail simple pour rendre la réponse plus utile.
Très bien. Garde la structure stable et vérifie si chaque mot a une fonction claire.
d'accord. Je répète encore la phrase, puis je la change legerement pour parler de ma propre situation.
Lea commence le français avec l'alphabet.
Elle écoute les sons, puis elle écrit son nom et sa ville.
Au debut de la leçon, Lea regarde les voyelles, les consonnes et les accents les plus fréquents. Elle écoute un mot, elle le répète, puis elle l'épelle pour voir comment le son et l'orthographe travaillent ensemble.
Le professeur rappelle que la prononciation avance par petites habitudes. On lit doucement, on répète une ligne utile, puis on revient au même exemple à vitesse normale pour sentir le rythme du français.
Une bonne base ne demande pas beaucoup de théorie le même jour. Elle demande des phrases courtes, des retours réguliers et un peu de confiance. Quand l'apprenant retrouve les mêmes structures dans plusieurs activites, la leçon cesse d'être une simple liste.
Turn this lesson into active recall: drill the vocabulary with spaced repetition, then test yourself on meaning and comprehension.
Write a mini identity card with your first name, family name, city, and one short email address or username. Underline one accent mark or one letter group that still feels tricky and note why.
Spell your first name and city aloud, then answer one calm reception-style question such as Comment ca s écrit ? without switching back to English.
Writing French without accents (cafe, très, français).
Treat accents as part of the spelling: café, très, français.
Accents can change meaning (a/à, ou/où) and an unaccented word is simply misspelled.
Pronouncing final consonants as in English (saying the t in "petit").
Drop most final consonants; keep c, r, f, l (CaReFuL).
Silent finals are one of the biggest differences between French spelling and sound.
Confusing é and è because they look similar.
é = closed "ay" (été); è = open "eh" (père). Say a pair aloud each day.
The two sounds distinguish real words: poignée vs poignet sound different.
Train the vowel contrasts and accent-mark habits that absolute beginners need first.
Target one of the most common beginner pronunciation problems with rounded-vowel drills.
Use ultra-short dictation to connect French sound, spelling, and first useful sentence frames.
Build short interaction confidence with opening lines, follow-ups, and polite repair phrases.
Keep the rescue phrases, polite formulas, and clarification moves that make beginner French usable.
