Practicing clear pronunciation | Learn French in English

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Use Practicing clear pronunciation to practice French conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

Je peux écouter l'audio ?

zhuh puh ay-koo-TAY loh-dyoh? Can I listen to the audio?

Écoutons ensemble.

ay-koo-TOHN ahn-SAHM-bluh. Let's listen together.

C'est trop rapide pour moi.

say troh rah-PEED poor MWAH. It's too fast for me.

Je vais le ralentir.

zhuh vay luh rah-lahn-TEER. I'll slow it down.

Comment je prononce cette phrase ?

koh-MAHN zhuh proh-NOHNSS set frahz? How do I pronounce this sentence?

Écoute une fois, puis répète après moi.

ay-KOOT oon FWAH, pwee ray-PET ah-PRAY MWAH. Listen once, then repeat after me.

Je vais essayer encore.

zhuh vay ay-say-YAY ahn-KOR. Let me try again.

Ça semble plus clair maintenant.

sah sahmbl ploo klehr man-tuh-NAHN. That sounds clearer now.

Word by Word

Je “Je” means “I” here and is the subject of “Je peux écouter l'audio ?”. It comes before the verb when the speaker says what they can do. A learner can use it to introduce a statement about their own action or intention.

peux “peux” expresses “can” in “Je peux écouter l'audio ?”, asking whether the speaker may or is able to listen. It is followed here by the infinitive “écouter”. This pattern is useful when asking permission or checking ability to do something.

écouter “écouter” means “to listen to” in “Je peux écouter l'audio ?”. It names the action that the speaker asks to do, and “l'audio” gives what is being listened to. It can be reused before the thing or person being listened to.

l'audio “l'audio” means “the audio” and is the thing being listened to in “Je peux écouter l'audio ?”. The form uses “l'” directly before “audio”. It can be used as the object after a verb such as “écouter” when referring to a specific audio recording.

Écoutons “Écoutons” invites the people present to listen together in “Écoutons ensemble.” It expresses a shared proposal to begin listening. It can be used at the start of an instruction or suggestion involving a group action.

ensemble “ensemble” means “together” and shows that the listening in “Écoutons ensemble.” is shared by the speakers. It commonly comes after the verb to describe a joint action. Use it when proposing or describing an activity done with another person or group.

C'est “C'est” means “it is” in “C'est trop rapide pour moi.” and introduces an evaluation of the audio's speed. It is followed here by a description of the audio. This pattern is useful for describing or judging something.

trop “trop” means “too” in “C'est trop rapide pour moi.” and shows that the speed is above what is comfortable for the speaker. It comes before “rapide” to mark an excessive degree. It can be reused before an adjective when something exceeds a suitable level.

rapide “rapide” means “fast” here and describes the audio in “C'est trop rapide pour moi.”. The word gives the quality being evaluated, while “trop” makes the speed excessive for the speaker. It can be used after a form of “être” to describe speed.

pour “pour” means “for” in “C'est trop rapide pour moi.” and identifies the person affected by the audio's speed. It is followed by “moi” here. This pattern is useful when stating that something is suitable, difficult, easy, or excessive for someone.

moi “moi” means “me” in “C'est trop rapide pour moi.”. It follows “pour” to identify the speaker as the person for whom the speed is too high. The expression “pour moi” can be reused to give a personal assessment or point of view.

vais “vais” helps express the speaker's intended next action in “Je vais le ralentir.”. It is followed by the infinitive “ralentir”, so the speaker announces what they are going to do. This construction is useful when stating an immediate intention.

le “le” means “it” in “Je vais le ralentir.” and refers to the audio that was described as too fast. It appears before “ralentir” as the object of the action. A direct-object pronoun can be placed before the verb when the object is already understood.

ralentir “ralentir” means “to slow down” in “Je vais le ralentir.”. It names the action the speaker plans to perform on the audio, represented by “le”. It can be reused with the thing whose speed is being reduced.

Comment “Comment” means “how” in “Comment je prononce cette phrase ?” and asks about the manner of pronouncing something. It introduces the question about the pronunciation process. It is useful when asking how to perform an action.

prononce “prononce” refers to pronouncing in “Comment je prononce cette phrase ?”. With “je”, it asks how the speaker should produce the sentence. This pattern can be reused when asking how to pronounce a particular word or sentence.

cette “cette” means “this” in “cette phrase” and points to the particular sentence being discussed. It comes directly before “phrase”. It can be reused before a singular noun when identifying one specific item.

phrase “phrase” means “sentence” in “Comment je prononce cette phrase ?”. It is the thing whose pronunciation the speaker is asking about. It can be used after “cette” when referring to a specific sentence.

Écoute “Écoute” tells one listener to listen in “Écoute une fois, puis répète après moi.”. It is a direct classroom instruction before the next practice steps. It can be reused at the beginning of an instruction about listening to something.

une “une” contributes the meaning “one” in “une fois”. Together, “une fois” means “once”, so the instruction is to listen one time. It can be placed before a singular noun when counting one item or occurrence.

fois “fois” means “time” in “une fois”, and the whole expression means “once”. It specifies one occurrence of the listening action. The expression can be reused when giving an instruction about how many times to do something.

puis “puis” means “then” in “Écoute une fois, puis répète après moi.”. It connects the listening step to the following repetition step in sequence. It can be reused between two actions to show what happens next.

répète “répète” tells the listener to repeat in “puis répète après moi.”. It introduces the practice action that follows listening. The pattern with “après” and a person is useful when asking someone to copy what another person says.

après “après” means “after” in “répète après moi” and indicates that the listener should repeat following the speaker's model. It is followed by “moi”, the person being followed. This construction is useful when asking someone to imitate speech or an action.

essayer “essayer” means “to try” in “Je vais essayer encore.”. It names the attempt that the speaker intends to make after receiving the pronunciation instruction. It can be used after the construction with “vais” when announcing an intended attempt.

encore “encore” means “again” in “Je vais essayer encore.” and shows that the speaker will make another attempt. It comes after the action here and refers back to the earlier attempt. It can be reused after a verb when repeating an action.

Ça “Ça” refers to what has just been said or produced in “Ça semble plus clair maintenant.”. It is the subject of the comment about the result. It can be used to begin a general comment about something currently being observed or evaluated.

semble “semble” means “seems” in “Ça semble plus clair maintenant.” and presents the speaker's impression of the result. It is followed by the description “plus clair”. This pattern is useful for giving an assessment without presenting it as an absolute statement.

plus “plus” means “more” in “plus clair” and marks an improvement in clarity compared with before. It comes before “clair” to form the comparison. It can be reused before an adjective when describing a greater degree of a quality.

clair “clair” means “clear” in “Ça semble plus clair maintenant.” and describes the result as easier to understand or hear after practice. “Plus” shows that this clarity is greater than before. The expression can be reused when giving feedback about improved clarity.

maintenant “maintenant” means “now” in “Ça semble plus clair maintenant.” and places the speaker's assessment at the current moment. It contrasts the present result with the earlier attempt. It can be used to comment on a change that has happened by the time of speaking.

Grammar Points

trop + adjectif

trop rapide

troh rah-PEED

too fast

trop comes before an adjective to show an excessive degree: “too fast,” not simply “fast.”

plus + adjectif

plus clair

ploo klehr

clearer / clearer than before

plus comes before an adjective to form a comparative: “clearer.”

French Vocabulary

audio noun

OH-dyoh audio recording

cette det

set this

comment adv

koh-MAHN how

écouter verb

ay-koo-TAY to listen

écoutons verb

ay-koo-TOHN let's listen

ensemble adv

ahn-SAHM-bluh together

moi pron

MWAH me

peux verb

puh can; am able to

prononce verb

proh-NOHNSS pronounce

ralentir verb

rah-lahn-TEER to slow down

rapide adj

rah-PEED fast

trop adv

troh too; excessively

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Can I listen to the audio?

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Je peux écouter l'audio ?

Let's listen together.

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Écoutons ensemble.

It's too fast for me.

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C'est trop rapide pour moi.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

together

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ensemble

too; excessively

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trop

can; am able to

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peux

audio recording

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audio