1 ::>iVG^Mmi^i::pi^lli^ UC-I >;>)>;isfpjirt«:; ;^r:: 'Vyi ;j4 .:; I ^//=^ -=///^ "E///- AID TO FR.ENCH PFLONUNCIAXION* 'ix TILLY I 1 5«S£ 3J5E 5^5:^= eiKElCY IBRARY "^iVfRSITY O^ CALIFOftNIA Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2007 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/aidtofrenchpronuOOtillrich MACMILLAN FRENCH SERIES AID TO FRENCH PRONUNCIATION MACMILLAN FRENCH SERIES CONTES DU PAYS DE MERLIN . . Fan Buren SCENES OF FAMILIAR LIFE . . . Frazer ABOUT'S LE ROI DES MONTAGNES mhon M£RIM£E'S COLOMBA Franfois LABICHE'S LA POUDRE AUX YEUX Lebon DAUDET'S CONTES CHOISIS . . . Head FRENCH CONVERSATION AND COMPOSITION IVann AID TO FRENCH PRONUNCIATION Tiiiy A FIRST FRENCH COURSE .... Roux FRENCH COMMERCIAL CORRE- SPONDENCE Fish MARRAINE DE GUERRE MUheltt EXERCICES FRAN9AIS Oeaux bt Ecrits : C0UR8 PrIparatoire' Premiere Partie Pargment DeuxiIme Partie HfiMON'S MARIA CHAPDELAINE . Thieme LA FRANCE ET LES FRAN9AIS . . Pargment JASINSKPS CONTES DE LA VIEILLE FRANCE Pargment AID TO FRENCH PRONUNCIATION WITH NUMEROUS DRAWINGS AND EXERCISES FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES BY EDMUND TILLEY PROFESSOR OF PHONETICS ROBERT COLLEGE, CONSTANTINOPLE THE MACMILLAN COMPANY MACMILLAN & CO., LIMITED LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCUTTA • MELBOURNE THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, LTD. TORONTO 1929 ^9903-/ ComucHT, 19*0, Br EDMUND TILLEY. •PRINTED IN THB UNITBD STATKS OF AMBKICA* 573 PREFACE This book is intended as an auxiliary in any French course in schools and colleges. It aims to help the student to acquire a more accurate pronunciation. There already exist a number of excellent books on French pronunciation, most of which however are intended for advanced students and emphasize the theory. On the other hand the few lines devoted to pronunciation in most French grammars are entirely inadequate. The author has sought to state only the essential differences between English and French pronunciation. Wherever a French and an English sound are alike exercises have been limited to a minimum or omitted altogether. In some cases preciseness had to be sacrificed to clearness in order to avoid detailed tech- nicalities. The drawings are not intended to be scien- tifically correct in all particulars but to show as clearly as possible the essential parts of the speech organs. Phonetic symbols are used, as French sounds cannot be represented accurately with the ordinary alphabet. The great advantage of the phonetic symbols is that each symbol stands only for one sound and always for the same sound, whereas one letter or a combination of letters may indicate four or even five different sounds. 550v Vi PREFACE The phonetic alphabet of the Association Phon^tique Internationale was chosen because it is the only one which is in common use in more than one country. Where several pronunciations exist for the same word the most common one was adopted. As authority in most cases was taken Michaelis-Passy's " Diction- naire phon^tique de la langue franqaise." I owe recognition especially to my father, William Tilly. Many of the ideas and methods which are used in this book I gained from his personal instruc- tion. I am also greatly indebted to the works of Paul Passy, above all to his ** Sons du franqais/' to Michaelis-Passy's " Dictionnaire phon^tique de la langue franqaise/' to J. Passy and A. Rambeau's " Chrestomathie f ran^aise " and to W. Victor's " KJeine Phonetik." Edmund Tillet. SCHSNBCTADY, NbW YoRK, February, 1920. A BRIEF BIBLIOGRAPHY P. Passy, Les sons du frangais. Paris, H. Didier. P. Passy and G. Hempl, International French-English and English- French Dictionary. Edited by R. M. Pierce. New York, Hinds, Noble & Eldredge. H. Michaelis et P. Passy, Dictionnaire phon^tique de la langue frangaise. Hannover and Berlin, Carl Meyer. F. Beyer et Paul Passy, Elementarbuch des Gesprochenen Franzosisch. Kothen, O. Schulze. J. Passy et A. Rambeau, Chrestomathie Fran9aise. Leipzig, Teubner. W. Ripman, The Sounds of Spoken English. London, Dent & Sons. D. Jones, An English Pronouncing Dictionary. London, Dent & Sons. D. Jones, The Pronunciation of English. Cambridge Uni- versity Press. C. H. Grandgent, German and English Sounds. Boston, Ginn & Co. W. Vietor, Elemente der Phonetik. Leipzig, O. R. Reisland. W. Vietor, Kleine Phonetik. Leipzig, O. R. Reisland. H. Sweet, The Sounds of English. Oxford University Press. B. Dumville, Elements of French Pronunciation. New York, Dutton & Co. L'Abb^ Rousselot et F. Laclotte, Precis de prononciation fran9aise. Paris and Leipzig, H. Welter. F. Franke, Phrases de tons les jours. Leipzig, O. R. Reisland, vii CONTENTS PAOM Introduction §§ 1-7 Advice to the student .... 1-3 § 8 List of French phonetic symbols used in this book 4-5 § 9 The organs of speech .... 6 §§ 10-15 Functions of the organs of speech . . 7-9 §16 The French sound chart (with explana- tions) 10-12 §§ 17-27 Sounds and the corresponding letters . 13-17 §28 French and English sounds which are alike 18 §29 French and English sounds which seem alike to the beginner but are not iden- tical 19 PART I. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ALL FRENCH SOUNDS With Numerous Drawings and Exercises for Oral Practice §§30-61 Consonants 20-34 §§31-37 Plosives (p, b; t, d; k, g) . . , 20-22 §§38-41 Nasals (rji, m ; n ; ji) .... 23-25 §§42-51 Fricatives (f, v; 8, z; J, 's; j; ii; w; h) 25-28 §§52-54 Laterals (J, 29-30 §§55-61 ''Rolled "'or ''Trilled" r (r, r; r, b) . 31-34 §§62-84 Vowels 35-63 §63 Position of Ups for all French vowels . 36-37 § 65 The three fundamental vowels (i — a — u) 38-39 §§66-68 The unrounded front vowels (i—e— 8) . 40-43 ix CONTENTS |{ 09-72 The rounded front vowels (y — ^ — ce) §§7d-76 The rounded back voweb (u — o — o) §§7ft-78 The two o-sounds (a— a) . §79 The "weak c'* sound (a) . §§80-84 The four nasal vowels (g a tt— 3) 6(M» 6^-67 67-63 PART U. HOW TO USE FRENCH SOUNDS IN CONNECTED SPEECH Obicbral Rdlbs §§86-^ Stress (Accent) 64-67 §§87-89 Liaison 67-70 §§90-92 Elision 71-73 §§93-96 Length of Sounds .... 73-76 §96 Syllables 7&-76 §97 Intonation 76 §§98-99 Final Consonants .... 76-77 §§ 100-126 Pronunciatiox or Lbttbbs of thb Al- PHABBT, LbTTBR COMBINATIONS, pRBnxBS, ANi> Endinos . 78-94 §127 Pronunciatioii op Numbrals ... 96 §128 PRONUNCIATIOlff OF THB AlPHABBT 96 §129 Pronunciation of tub Days of thb Wbbk 96 §130 Pronunciation of tub Months ... 96 PART m. PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS FOR ORAL PRACTICE §131 Notes on thb Phonbtic Transcriptions 97 §§182-144 Prosb 98-133 §§132-137 Vert Slow and Carbfdl Pronumcia- TION 98-111 § 132 La salle de classe 98-101 § 133 Maximes, La Rochefoucauld . . 102-103 § 134 La France and L'tle-de-France, Ches- terfield 104-106 CONTENTS XI §136 Letabac § 136 La Fontaine, G. Bruno §137 Premieres Etudes, Chateaubriand §§138-142 Pronunciation in Ordinary Reading § 138 Raison et poumons § 139 Une repartie § 140 Le violon §141 Roland. § 142 Le singe, F^nelon §§143-144 Rapid Conversational Pronunciation § 143 En classe § 144 La Grammaire, Labiche §§145-149 Poetry Very Slow and Careful Style § 146 Le petit mari .... § 146 La m^re Michel .... § 147 Le corbeau et le renard. La Fontaine § 148 Apr6s la bataille, Victor Hugo . § 149 La Marseillaise, Rouget de L'Isle PAOXB 104-107 106-109 108-111 112-123 112-113 112-113 112-117 116-119 118-123 124-133 124-127 126-133 134-141 134-136 136-137 136-139 138-141 140-141 INTRODUCTION ADVICE TO THE STUDENT § 1. How to use introduction. Eead introduction once in order to acquaint yourself with the organs of speech and sounds in general. Later use the intro- duction for reference. §§ 17-29 may be used for oral practice. § 2. How to use Part I. Begin immediately with Part I (Detailed description of all French sounds), pp. 20-63. Study diagrams and drill on exercises given under diagrams. The only way to learn French sounds is to practice them aloud. Unless the exercises are practiced aloud, they are valueless. This applies also to the phonetic transcriptions on pp. 98-141. § 3. Drawings. When studying the drawings ob- serve the following points : 1. Are the lips " rounded " or " spread " ? 2. Where is the tongue raised highest, at the tip, in front or in the back? 3. Is the soft palate lowered, so that the air can pass through the nose making the sound nasal ? Or is the soft palate raised and the sound therefore not nasal ? In the explanations to the drawings the terms " The tongue is more in front ^' or " The tongue is lower,'' etc., do not necessarily mean that the whole tongue is more in front or lower, but that the highest point reached by the tongue is more in front or lower. 1 2 INTRODUCTION § 4. How to learn sounds. Do not try to learn all sounds at once. It is better to pronounce a few sounds correctly than a great many only half correctly. Con- centrate for several days at a time on one or two sounds. Use a small mirror to get the right position of lips and tongue as shown in the drawings. A small flashlight will help you to see the inside of your mouth. Drill thoroughly on exercises which have been carefully selected for that purpose. The exercises are short be- cause it has been found best to practice a sound in a few carefully selected words again and again until the sound is pronounced correctly. These words ought to be used as models for all new words. It is better to practice sounds, words, or sentences three times a day for five minutes than once a day for fifteen minutes. Practice sounds as often as possible, but not as long as possible. Sounds are learned best by exaggerating them in the beginning. Pronounce them therefore more energet- ically than the average Frenchman would. Lengthen diiiicult sounds at first It is easier to hear mistakes when the sounds are long than when they are short. § 5. Sounds and letters. Sounds are not letters. This should be borne in mind when studying the book. All symbols in italics represent sounds.^ In most lan- guages we do not spell as we pronounce, especially not in English and French. In English the vowel sound 1 In a few cases roman instead of italic types had to be used In this book, because the italic types which could be obtained were not those approved by the Association Phon^tique Inter- nationale. ADVICE TO THE STUDENT 3 " o " * for instance may be spelled o, oh, ow, ew, ough, oa, eau, oe (so, oh, sow, sew, though, boat, beau, foe). On the other hand one combination of letters (ough) may be pronounced in seven different ways (trough, tough, though, through, thought, thorough, bough). Likewise in French one sound has often many equivalents in spelling. The sound " k '' may be spelled k, c, ch, q, qu, ck, cqu (kilometre, comment, Chretien, coq, quand, bifteck, acquerir). These six words are pronounced alike: tan, tant, taon, temps, tend, tends. There are also a great many cases where one letter is pronounced in many different ways, such as e, o, c, g. In phonetics, however, a sound is always represented by the same symbol and a symbol always stands for the same sound. § 6. How to use Part II. Study general rules, pp. 64-77 and the rules in § 100 on p. 78, before taking up Part III. The pronunciation of letters of the al- phabet, etc., pp. 79-94, is intended only for reference. § 7. How to use Part III. When reading the pho- netic transcriptions on pp. 98-141 practice sentences separately in the beginning and repeat each sentence several times before continuing. Begin with the very slow and careful pronunciation, §§ 132-137 and §§ 145- 149. Always read aloud. 1 For the sake of simplicity called a vowel sound here, hut in reaUty a diphthong. See § 62, p. 35, and § 74, pp. 51-52. 4 niTRODUCTIOW §8. LIST OF FRENCH PHONETIC SYMBOLS USED IN THIS BOOK a in la (la, \k). See § 25, §§ 76-77. a in to (las). See § 25, § 28, § 66, § 76, § 78. a in ta (tan, taon, temps, tant, tend[8]). See S 27, § 82, § 84. 6 in 63 (bon). See § 17, § 28, § 32. d in dy (du). See § 17, § 29, § 33, § 36. 6 in Je (chez). See § 22, § 29, § 67. c in fcir (cher, ch^re, chair, chaire). See § 22, § 28, § 68. e in 8e (saint, sein, sain, seing, ceint). See f 27, § 80, §84. » in fo Ge). See § 26, § 29, § 79, §S 91-92. / in/d'2;5 (faisons). See § 19, § 28, § 42. g in gra (grand). See § 17, § 28, § 37. h see § 51. i in fi'zik (physique). See § 22, § 29, § 65, § 66. j in bje (bien). See § 19, § 28, § 48. k inkok (coq). See § 17, § 29, § 36. I in III (Lille). See § 20, § 29, § 52, § 64. I in 8iki (cycle). See § 20, §§ 62-53. m in m5 (mon). See § 18, § 28, § 39. rji in asr^i (asthme). See § 18, § 38. n in n5 (non, nom). See § 18, § 29, § 40. ji in siji (signe, cygne). See § 18, § 41. o in ro^'zo (roseau). See § 24, § 29, § 74. in otomo'bil (automobile). See § 24, § 29, § 76. 5 in 65 (bon). See § 27, § 83, § 84. ^ mk^ (queue). See § 23, § 29, § 69, § 71. (B in koRir (cceur). See § 23, § 29, § 69, § 72. LIST OF PHONETIC SYMBOLS 5 6i in 6s.^^ (humble). See § 27, § 81, § 84. J? in pa'pa (papa). See § 17, § 29, § 31. r in ri\r (rire). See § 21, § 29, § 55, § 56, § 58. r in ei^^ (etre). See § 21, § m, § m, § 57. B in Ri\R (rire). See § 21, § h^^ § 59, § 61. R in z\tR (etre). See § 21, § m, § 59, § 60. s in 6'?s°(six). See § 19, § 28, § 44. J in Jer'Je (chercher). See § 19, § 28, § 46. t in U\t (tete). See § 17, § 29, §§ 33-34. u in livHiu (coucou). See § 24, § 29, § ^h, § 73. V in mi (vous). See § 19, § 28, § 43. w in swa\r (soir). See § 19, § 28, § 50. y in lysty^kry (lustucru). See § 23, §§ 69-70. ?/ in ^^t (huit). See § 19, § 49. z in \o\z (chose). See § 19, § 28, § 45. 3 in 3a (gens, Jean). See § 19, § 28, § 47. I sign for long vowel ; e.g. p^\r (pere). See §§ 93-95. ' sign for half-long vowel; e.g. d'[fa (enfant). See §§ 93-95. ' sign for stress, written before accented syllable ; e.g. pyrifika'^sjo (purification). Accent is omitted in disconnected monosyllabic words. See §§ 85-86. '^ sign over vowel indicates that vowel is nasal. See §§ 80-84, § 100. Note, Learn to distinguish between the following phonetic symbols : a— a (§25, §§76-78) e—e (§ 22, §§ 67-68) e—3 (§ 22, § 26, § 67, § 79, §§ 91-92) ;^— 3 (§ 19, § 45, § 47) INTRODUCTION § 9. THE ORGANS OF SPEECH Vertical Section of tub Hbad, Suowino thb Oroahs of Speech (Shaded Portion of tux Head) 1. Lips. 2. Teeth. 3. Upper gnms. 4. Hard palate. 6. Soft palate (velum). 6. Uvula (end of velum). 7. Tip of tongue. 8. Blade of toDf^ie. 9. Front of tongue. 10. Back of tongue. 11. Epiglottis. 12—12. Larynx. 13. Two vocal cords (only one showing in diagram). THE ORGANS OF SPEECH 7 FUNCTIONS OF THE ORGANS OF SPEECH § 10. It is impossible to learn sounds accurately without knowing how the organs of speech are used to form sounds. Study your lips and the inside of your mouth with a small looking-glass. § 11. Breath. To produce speech sounds breath is needed. The breath is pressed by the diaphragm through the lungs and the air tube, and passes through the mouth and nose where it causes friction in certain places. These places are called points of articulation. The difference in the sound of the friction depends on whether the mouth is closed or how wide it is opened, whether the lips are " rounded " or " spread," whether the passage to the nose is closed or open. The nar- rower the passage, the stronger will be the friction. § 12. Articulation in mouth. The blade of the tongue usually articulates against the teeth or the upper gums ; the front of the tongue against the hard palate ; the back of the tongue against the soft palate. In other words, each part of the tongue usually is raised towards the nearest part of the roof of the mouth for the required sound. § 13. Nasal articulation. If the soft palate is low- ered, the air can pass through the nose as well as through the mouth. If the soft palate is raised and pressed back, the air can pass only through the mouth. For most sounds the passage through the nose is closed. Practice the following with a looking-glass : Have the mouth wide open. Let the light fall well on the roof of the mouth. Pronounce iirst the sound a (ah). The soft palate is pressed against the back wall of the 8 INTRODUCTION pharynx, thereby closing the passage through the nose. Then pronounce the "ng" sound. The soft palate comes down and touches the back of the tongue, clos- ing the passage through the mouth and letting the breath pass through the nose only. Repeat these two sounds several times one after the other. The small appendix to the soft palate which you can see moving with it is the uvula. The " AH '' Sound The " NO " Sound Soft palate lowered, through] Soft palate pressed against back wall of pharynx. Air passes through mouth. § 14. Voice. Voice is produced with the two vocal cords which are in the larynx just above the air tube. They are elastic and move very easily. In order to produce voice the two vocal cords are brought close together. The pressure of the air, which is forced through the small passage between them, causes them to vibrate. This vibration produces the sound called yoke. THE ORGANS OF SPEECH 9 The opening between the two vocal cords is called glottis, hence the name "glottal sounds" for sounds formed only between the vocal cords. ToSlT/ON OF VOCAL Cords W/TH VOICELESS SouNPS. TOSITION OF VOCAL CORDS WITH VOICED SOUNPS. 2 :^ -^ ^ -j: -^ Sounds with " voice '' are called voiced. Sounds without " voice " are called voiceless. § 15. Lips. In English the lips are used very little. In French they are an important factor in modifying sounds, especially vowels. Certain vowels differ from others only in the position of the lips. The Three Fundamental Positions of the Lips Rounded Sounds y and u. Wide Open Sound a. 10 INTRODUCTION It ® 15 §. s M 5^ •s a H 3 C ••• If !:« H 2, ss «il lil 2 < 3 > 3 1 2 aaoKox o SXKVN0SX03 sia.\io V THE FRENCH SOUND CHART 11 Underlined sounds are voiceless, all the others are voiced (pronounced with voice). All vowels are voiced. ° (circle) under m, Z, r, R indicates that they are voiceless. No special symbol has been chosen for these voiceless sounds, as they do not occur very frequently. * after sound indicates that lips are rounded. ^ over vowel indicates that it is nasal. The sounds in this diagram are given according to their points of articulation. The farther back in the mouth a sound is formed, the farther back is it placed in the chart. The lower in the mouth a sound, i.e. the more opening there is for the passage of the breath, the lower is it placed in the chart. The sound s, for instance, is formed in the front of the mouth, and the passage for the breath is narrow, a is formed farther back in the mouth, and the passage for the breath is very wide. Bilabials are formed with both lips. Labiodentals are formed with upper teeth and lower lip. Alveolars are formed with tip or blade of tongue and upper gums. Palatals are formed with front of tongue and hard palate (front part of palate). Velars are formed with back of tongue and soft palate (back part of palate). Uvulars are formed with back of tongue and uvula. Glottals are formed with the vocal cords. Plosives. Mouth entirely closed for a moment by 1 1 ps, or by pressing tongue against teeth or palate. Nasals. Passage through mouth is closed by both 12 INTRODUCTION lips, or by pressing tongue against teeth or palate. The soft palate is lowered and air therefore passes only through the nose. With nasal vowels air passes through mouth and nose simultaneously. Fricatives. Both lips, tongue and teeth, or tongue and palate are brought so close together that the pass- ing air causes strong friction. Hence the name frica- tives. Laterals. Tip of tongue pressed against teeth, while sides of tongue are lowered sufficiently to allow the air a free passage. Rolled (trilled). The air passage is closed for a moment, then opened, again closed, and so forth. This is repeated several times in quick succession in the manner in which a drumstick " vibrates " on the drum. Vowels. See §§ 62-84. Length. If vowel is followed by i it is long, if fol- lowed by • it is half-long. Otherwise it is short (passe =/)ai«, passer =pa»'«e, pas =/)a). Accent is indicated by ' in front of syllable which is accented (passer = jxif'se, intonation s I'Uma^'afi). SOUNDS AND LETTERS 13 ■^ II 'd ^<' h s CO i a, rO •« "^ rii fO C^ P^ t^ O pi ^ ^J^ rd cT II 11 II II II sioa -WAg 01 -xaxoHj S!^ rO « '^ rie ,-1 d ^ ^ O CO 00 CO CO CO .^ ,x>. <^ CO l> CZ2 Oi 03 <0 OJ 02 ^ a a a a ^ Tl II II II .& be s s ^ a -^^ 'i g i r£3 ;-< n « o .^ II II II II II II ►» — ^- ►» o ua ^^=: a § II -MAS 01 -XSNOB<| '^ P "0 »o > 5 » »r y^f y*f y*f ffS ♦* gj © © © U Q) Q> 1-^ OQ QQGO OQCAOQ 00 etfe (00 eoo 0? a> o SOtNDS AND LETTERS 15 II II 1 ^ II 1 II II CO w a^ 8^ S '"1 II li 7 u II II r^o iXi* S-oft^o ^ ft^ § 20. Laterals See §§ 52, 53 See §§ 52, 54 § 21. Rolled See §§ 55-57 See §§55, 59-60 See §§ 55-58 See §§55, 59-61 55j '^ <» to '^ ^ ^ M g OQ i a 1 • § fti v_^ 'm' ^ XD '^ -s^-ft II o a 'p ii • II ^ II II 1 an II 8 II :S 00 --•S> r^ 5>> u 8 *S pi S „- ^ M) . CO -©. 1 ^ lO O CO •o5 (CO »=o S ^5^ «s ^ 'Ci &5 cc 5^ ,:S r2 «^ s:^^ ,0 ^ >1 a a •5 ^ .2 ^ '^ a II II II |1 rS 6C '^ g 1^ ^§ i5. 'i :g 'S a> a !fis i£ a ^ fl fl g fl o B >* •s fH- ^ 1 o § 1 1 B B .a c^ a a fl a oT t>> e« w -3 c« © O II II II II II 03 (CO) «« -r^ f i IN tu ^ f «^ IN tell § 33. French { ^ ^ English { , I d IN du I d IN do Tip of tongue farther back in English. Breath following if*. Tip of tongue pressed against edges of upper teeth, not against gums, as in English. No breath following t. Exercise 2, for t (voiceless). Practice aloud. Use mirror. teta'teit tete-^-tete testaUoeir testateur to'tal 1 to 'te ta t il o^'te ta 'tuf total ' Ton th^ t'a-t-il 6t6 ta toux? 22 PLOSIVES ^ Exercise 3, for d (voiced). Practice aloud. Use mirror. I de'd^ I d€:d i d^'da ; didak'tik ! d^ dody dl'''nUl j ki'kSik • ata'ke \ ; coco ! car ; comment ; quiconque ! attaquer ; .• 1 : ; ' : French k is not followed by breath as English k^. Otherwise both sounds are alike. Practice English k^ and French k, first alone, then in " come " (with A:^) and "comme" (=zkom, without breath), in the same manner as p and ^ (§§ 31, 33, 34). §37. 9 = gyg^ Same as in English " girl." See also § 99, final voiced consonants. Ex. ^a = gant. CONSONANTS 23 §38. ; -me NASALS Same as m, but voiceless. This soTind is found only at the end of a word, after a voiceless consonant. Exercise 5, for m (voiceless). Practice aloud. Use mirror. ryma'tism rhumatisme asm asthme Jovi'nism chauvinisme schisme milita'rism militarisme § 39. m = m, mm (voiced) Same as in English " mother." Ex. mb = mon ; fam = femme ; meim = m^me. § 40. n = n, nn French n in nos English n in no Tip of tongue pressed against edges of upper teeth, not against gums as in English. Tip of tongue must show be- tween teeth in French, as with Tip of tongue farther back and higher in English. Tip of tongue does not show be- tween teeth. See also t and (i(§§3a-35). 24 CONSONANTS Soft palate lowered with both sounds, therefore they are nasal. Exercise 6. Practice aloud. Use mirror. ; ncin I naine niko'tin I rxon \ UR'nct • kano'nad nicotine • nonne ; Nannette ; canonnade ana'na ananas §41. ji = gn, ng French ji in magnifique Tip of tongue touches lower teeth. Front of tongue pressed against hard palate. Passage through mouth closed completely. Soft palate lowered; sound therefore nasal. Exercise 7. Practice aloud. Use mirror. I signe \ cygne svgoji cigogne pe'jic peigner mi'tiji meeting k^-'paji compagne fl'jlO agneau There is no similar sound in English. The position of the tongue in general is the same as for English y in "yes," "young." The tongue is pressed more energetically against the roof of the mouth, however. FRICATIVES 25 The soft palate is lowered and the breath escapes through the nose. Practice the sound first in the word " peigner " (pe-'jie). Pause between the two syllables to get cor- rect position of tongue for ji. Be careful not to raise the tip of the tongue after e. It is not a bad mistake to say nj instead of ji. Many Prenchmen pronounce it that way. §42. /= f, ff, pli FRICATIVES Same as in English "five.'' Ex. feir = faire ; o^frixr = offrir ; j^fo'2;o/= pliilosophe. § 43. ?; = V, w Same as in English " liver.'' See Ex. vu = vous ; also § 99, final voiced consonants kaiv = cave ; va'go = wagon. §44 O — S. bo. K/m Uj X Same as in English " so." Ex. si's = six ; tais = tasse ; i^si = ici ; Za'sa = leQon. § 45. z = s, z Same as in English " zero." See also § 99, final voiced consonants. Ex. ^eiz = chaise ; zeil = zele ; o^'ze = oser. § 46. J = ch, sch Same as in English "ship." Ex. val = vache ; le'ma = schema ; ^e^^'je = chercher. § 47. 3 = j> ge Same as in English " treasure." See also § 99, final voiced consonants. Ex. 3a = Jean, gens ; 50 7i = joli ; Ta:^ = rage. § 48. j = i, y, 11, il, ill Same as in English "yes." 26 CONSONANTS See § 109 and § 125. Ex. [jc = chien ; le'zj^ = les yeux ; Jiij = tille ; tra'vaij = travail ; trava'je = tra- vailler. French y in lui Tip of tongue touches lower teeth. Front of tongue almost touches hard palate, but drops immediately. No similar sound in English. Exercise 8. Practice aloud. Use mirror. ; yit \ lyi I pyi > mye ; ryin j d'^syit ! nyiHia ! huit ! lui I puis j muet ! mine | ensuite ; nuance Before learning this sound the vowel y in "sur" (syir) must have been completely mastered. See vowel y, §§ 69-70 and § 121. The position of the tongue is the same for y and J, but the lips are rounded for y> while they are spread for J. Pronounce the soundj in " yes." Then round your lips until the opening is just large enough to push a nail through. Keep the lips in this position (rounded) and pronounce again the sound j. As the lips are rounded, the sound obtained will not be J but y, y is hard to pronounce in most words. Although it FRICATIVES 27 is strongly rounded, it usually precedes vowels which, are not rounded, for instance in huit (?/i*^). Position of Lips in the Word huit (jiit) /^^ /^ ?i^ (£ff^i ^N^ ^ y it Pronounce the word "huit" (^^'0? ^s if it were jity with the lips drawn back at the corners. Then round lips until hardly any opening is left and repeat slowly j — itf keeping the lips rounded for j, and drawing them quickly back for it. Eepeat this several times, grad- ually increasing the speed. Or pronounce the word as if it were yiit, with vowel y instead of consonant -y. Eepeat the word several times in succession, slowly at first, making a short pause between yi and it. Increase speed gradually, omitting the pause, and rounding the lips still more energetically for y, until you have the consonant !(. Practice in the same manner suis (s?/i), luette (liiet)^ lui (?^/^). Do not say swi, Iwet, h_oi, wit. Practice also the following exercise, in order to learn the difference between ?/ and w, pronouncing first one word with the sound ?/, and then the corresponding word below with the sound w. 28 FRICATIVES Exercise 9, for y and to. Practice aloud. V lyi lui nye nu^e sua suette tye tuer 8uint Ruy 1 w IVfi Louis nwe nouer stoet (je,il)80uhaite ttoe touer 8oin TVfi ] roui 1 60. w = ou, w, o(i), o(y), 0(6) Ex. pwair = French to in oai poire ; Iwi s Louis ; tram- 'toe=s tramway ; trwa=a trois. Lips rounded ener- getically. Tongue pulled back and as high as pos- sible, but drops imme- diately. Lips rounded more energetically than in English, Otherwise same as in English " will." See alphabet, § 115, under on. Also Exercise 9, for y and w. §61. h = h Most Frenchmen do not pronounce this sound at all. If however pronounced, it is the same as in English " he." NoTB. We must distinguish between h mute and h aspirate ; h mute is never pronounced, h aspirate may be pronounced. No elision and no liaison is made before h aspirate. Example : Le h^ros = h e^'ro, un h^ros = ce e*'ro. But before h mute : L'homme = bm, un homme = cB'n am. See § 88, 2, and § 90. ^ CONSONANTS 29 § 62. French LATERALS I IN table I IN il English I in ilL Tip of tongue pressed against Tip of tongue farttier back, edges of upper teeth (as for pressing against upper gums tf d, n). Tongue must show (asiort,d,n). Back of tongue between teeth. Back of also raised, hence the so-called tongue lowered. "thick" or ''dull" sound of English I. Dotted line shows how breath escapes on both sides of tongue, as the middle of the tongue is raised. The sides of the tongue cannot be shown in these diagrams. Exercise 10, for I (voiceless). Practice aloud. Use mirror. taibl table vi'ziibl visible sjeikl siecle mi'ra\kl miracle 8i\kl cycle &ibl humble poepl peuple Exercise 11, for I (voiced). Practice aloud. l9 lila I le lilas ! la vil la ville Id sjel I le ciel ! lapi'lyl la pilule III Lille l9 bal \ le bal I laVmaji PAllemagne LATERALS f 63. { = -le Same as next sound, l, but voioe' less. Learn voiced I first The voiceless { is found only at the end of a word, after another consonant. §54. ; = 1, 11 Say a long English / as in "ill." Continue the sound while pushing the tip of the tongue gradually forward until it reaches the edge of the upper teeth. Try to pull down the back of the tongue at the same time. In that manner you get the French ly which sounds more like e, not like o or ti. A better way is to learn it in a word. At the begin- ning of a word the English / is usually about the same as in French, i,e. the back of the tongue is not raised, or only very little. Pronounce the English word "lean" several times very slowly, increasing the length of / every time. Push tongue gradually forward until it shows between teeth. Then try sound alone. If I should still sound like o or t/, start the whole pro- cedure over again. Practice initial I also in words like le (/»), la (la)y lea (le). At first make I as long as possible. In that way you can hear more easily if sound is correct. After le, la, les take words like Philippe {Ji'lip)i &ise (e'/iw), where / is between two vowels. The next step is final / after front vowels in ville, vil, vile (= viT), tel, telle (= td). Last of all one should try / after back vowels, as in salle («a/), foule {fuJ), It is very hard to keep the back of the tongue down for / after back vowels. ly as well as the next two consonants, r and r, re- quires a good deal of patience. These three sounds are among the most difficult French consonants. CONSONANTS 31 "ROLLED" OR "TRILLED'' R § 55. There are two trilled r sounds in French. Either of them may be used, but not both by the same person. There is a third r, which can be frequently heard in Paris and elsewhere, but it is not considered as good as the other two sounds. Only the trilled tongue and uvular r are given here. Tongue r (r) is used in small towns, in the country, and by orators or actors. Uvular r (n) is heard more in Paris and other large towns. (V IN rendre , English x in very r IN rendre "^ Tip of tongue ** vibrates" on the upper gums, i.e., it closes the air passage completely for a moment, drops down a little, closes it again, and so on. This is done several times in such quick succes- sion that one can hardly count the "taps." Dotted line indicates course of breath. Tongue does not vibrate. Tip of tongue also raised toward the gums, but leaves a nar- row passage. [The majority of Americans form u (as in very) a little farther back than the English. This sound must be avoided in French. It is the worst mistake that can be made in French.] 82 CONSONANTS Exercise 12, for f (voiceless). Practice aloud. Use mirror. \ 6tre ; ordre itpx \ marbx 1 prdrdf j Ypres ; marbre S prendre ; Exercise 13, for r (voiced). Practice aloud. Uae mirror. 6n/ j brixz 1 bra bref ! briae ! bras bry'U I pre ; prca brdler ; pr4 ', preese prix craque ori mu*riir mourir dbr^mUr dormir mar'iiiT mart7r(e) §67. X = -re Same as next sound, r, but voice- less. Learn voiced r first Voiceless % is found only at the end of a word, after another consonant. §68. r = r, rr The best way to learn the " trilled " or " rolled " r is in a word after 6 or p (brise = brixZj prix = pri). In the beginning try only to pro- duce one ^^ tap.'' As soon as you are able to do that, it is comparatively easy to make two, three, or more taps. A Frenchman does not, under ordinary circum- stances, make more than two or three ^' taps." The muscles of the tongue must be relaxed. (A drummer does not stiffen the muscles of his hand !) Practice also words like bras {bra), bref (bref), brosse (bros), pr^s (pre), prose (proiz). After hav- ing fully mastered these words try the following words : crasse (kras), craie (Are), Arabe (a'rab), marine (ma'rin). The average student will find r much easier R-SOUNDS 33 in these combinations than in any others. Do not try r after t and d at first. e en -ci f ^ i^ rendre § 59. French^ ° \e IS rendre Tongue with Deep De- pression, EUNNING FROM Tip to Back Uvula " vibrates " on back of tongue. Deep depression in tongue, running from tip to back, as shown in small diagram. Back of tongue pressed against the soft palate, except in middle. For a moment uvula closes completely the air passage in the middle of tongue. The next moment it is pushed forward, allowing just a little air to escape. It drops back, is pushed forward again, and so on, several times in quick succession (as with r). Dotted line indicates course of breath. Exercise for r and r : See exercises for r and r. §60. R = -re Same as next sound, r, but voice- less. Learn voiced r first (§ 61). Voiceless ^ is found only at the end of a word, after another consonant. 34 CONSONANTS 61. 7? = r, rr The average student will find "tongue r" easier than "uvular r." As has been pointed out, only one is necessary. It pays, however, to try both. It is impossible to learn this sound when uvula is dry. Nearly everybody can produce the sound when gar- gling. Take at first a few drops of water and gargle, after having practiced a little use only one drop, until finally you can " gargle " without any water. " Gar- gling without water '' is equivalent to pronouncing the " uvular r." Try R in the following words : Arabe (a'i2a&), herbe (ej?6), Aries (ai?/), rose (^oi«), rat (^a). Do not prac- tice R before or after A: or ^ at first As soon as your uvula feels dry, take a little water or stop practicing for a while. VOWELS § 62. The average student will find vowels mucli harder to learn than consonants, because French vowels are pronounced much more energetically than English vowels. The slightest change in the position of the tongue will also change the sound of the vowel com- pletely. The muscles of the tongue are tense for all French vowels. In English the muscles are usually re- laxed, or in many cases they become only gradually tense towards the end of the vowel sound. Hence the great number of " diphthongs " in English. Compare the English and French words in the following exercise. Exercise 14. Practice aloud. Use mirror. I English sii ser 1 sou suit 1 c, see, say [ so, sow, sew Sioux (Indian) j sea sou (French coin) ! French SI se 1 so -I su 1 (tong-ue SI, Cl, c, ses, ces, ! sot, saut, seau, sou, sous, soue, ! tense) scie sais( present Isceau, Sceaux of "savoir")j soul, or saoul [ In English in these words you begin to pronounce the vowel before the muscles of the tongue are tense. The tongue therefore is generally lower than it would be were the muscles tense. But while you are still pronouncing the vowel you stiffen the muscles. This causes the tongue to be raised. In French the tongue must be tense the moment you begin the vowel. There- fore the tongue is high from the. very beginning. 35 36 VOWELS § 63. The lips also play an important part in the for- mation of most vowels. The lips are either " rounded " or " spread," or the mouth is " wide open." Imitate the position of the lips in the drawings below with the aid of a small mirror. Exaggerate the position of the lips as much as possible in the beginning. Sometimes three or even four vowels have the same position of the lips. POSITION OF LIPS FOR ALL FRENCH VOWELS POSITION OF LIPS 37 1 1. i (=i, i, i, y) , ^ 1 2/ ( = u, u, eu, eu) ,' ' 1 w ( = ou, ou) 1 1 2. e (= ^, e, er, ez, ai, ce) f ^ ( = eu, eu, ceu) I 5. ( = 0, 6, au, eau) 1 I 5 ( = om, on) j j j 8 (= 6, e, e, ai, ei) 1 ■ [c (=im, in, en, ym, yn, [ aim, ain, eim, ein, I (i)en, (o)in ) 6. ce (= eu, oe, oeu, ue) I oe {= um, un, eun) | (=0, 00, au, u(m) )1 • d (= e, on, ai) j 1 7. a ( = a, ^, a, (o)i, (o)i, 1 (o)e ) j a(=a, a, (o)i, (0)1, (o)g ) 1 a {= am, an, em, en, aon) ! § 64. In the following paragraphs (§§ 65-84) the French vowels have been grouped according to the position which the tongue occupies. (See p. 10.) The 16 vowels will be given in the foil owing order : 1. The three fundamental vowels, i — a — u, § 65. 2. The three simple front vowels with "spread" lips, i — e — 8, § § 66-68. 3. The three corresponding front vowels with "rounded" lips, y — ^ — oe,^ 69-72. 4. The " rounded " back vowels, u — o — o, § § 73-75. 5. The two a-sounds, a and a, §§ 76-78. 6. The " weak e " sound, a, § 79. 7. The four nasal vowels, e — & — a — o, §§ 80-84. Vowels are learned best by comparing them with other known vowels. Wherever possible every French vowel will be compared with the English vowel that resembles it most in formation of tongue and lips. 38 VOWELS § 65. THE THREE FUNDAMENTAL VOWELS i = i, i, i', y u = ou, oH a = a, &, (o)i, (o)i, (0)6 = I THE THREE FUNDAMENTAL VOWELS 39 i. Tip of tongue touching lower teeth. Front of tongue raised toward hard palate. Lips spread. (Mouth too wide open for i in this diagram. For a more accurate drawing of ^ see § 66.) a. Tip of tongue barely touching lower teeth. Back of tongue raised slightly toward soft palate. Mouth wide open. See also § 78. tt. Tongue drawn back and raised toward soft palate. Lips rounded energetically. (Mouth too wide open for u in this diagram. For a more accurate drawing of u see § 73.) For i — a — u the tongue occupies the three extreme vowel positions. i and ii are the two highest vowels (equally high). a is the lowest vowel. £ is the most advanced vowel. u is farthest back of all vowels. For position of lips of the three fundamental vowels see drawings in § 15, page 9, or in § 63, 1, 7, 4. The position of some of the other vowels has been indicated in the diagram. Exercise 15. Pronounce very slowly. Tongue tense. Move lips energetically. Hold mirror in front of mouth. Do not stop between vowels. ; 1. i\ — a: — u: — ii- — ai- — u: etc. 1 ! ^• ai — i: — u: — ai — ii- — UI etc. I ! 3. wi — a: — ii — UI — ai — ii etc. I Note. The lower a vowel the wider open is the mouth, 40 VOWELS THE UNROUNDED FRONT VOWELS i — e — 8 §66. i = i, h ^, y French t in si EvoLiSH Ji IN see Tip of tongue toaches lower teeth. Front of tongue raised higher towards hard palate than in English. Moacles of the tongue tense. Lipe spread mnch more energetically than in English. No movement of tongue or lips. French i is a pure vowel. (For a detailed description of the difiference between French t, e, o, u, and English 7i, ei, ov, uu, see § 62 on page 35.) Tip of tongue touches lower teeth. Muscles of tongue re- laxed at first, gradually be- coming tense, hence- move- ment of tongue. Lips drawn back less energetically than in French. (Dotted line in- dicates movement of the tongue, the lips, etc. This movement has been exagger- ated in the diagram in order to show more plainly the dif- ference between French and English.) English /£ is a diph- thong. (In England, however, many people use only the pure i.) THE UNROUNDED FRONT VOWELS 41 Exercise 16. Practice aloud. Use mirror. ^ i'si I Ji'lip ici ] Philippe bisi'klist bicycliste prtiz prise liivr . fiij livre 1 fiUe ili'ziihl illisible Note. English / as in sit, give, ill, etc., does not exist in French. Avoid this English sound in French words like il, Philippe, illisible, etc. 67. e = e, e, er, ez, ai, oe Erench e IN ete English ei in hate Tip of tongue touches lower teeth. Front of tongue raised high towards hard palate, but not so high as for French i. Muscles of tongue tense. Lips spread more energeti- cally than in English. No movement of tongue or lips. French e is a pure vowel. See also § 62. Tip of tongue touches lower teeth. Muscles of tongue re^ laxed at first, gradually be- coming tense, hence upward movement of tongue. Lips are drawn back less ener- getically than in French. (Dotted line and arrows in- dicate movement of tongue, lips, etc.) English ei is a diphthong. 42 THE UNROUNDED FRONT VOWELS Exercise 17. Practice aloud. Use mirror. Ir^^u^rer r^^n6r6 r^^D^rez ae'de ; j^ \ 3« ! te»; u^ ; ie^ S don're c^der'.pied: rail [les! tea : see 2 (]e) donnerai c4d6 : : K I 16 i th^: cea! c^es; i geai; lez; t 1 ^ 1 NoTB. Be very careful not to use the English diphthong 0/ (as in tray) for final French e, in words like M^ pied, c6der, etc. Final vowel sounds are short in French. Do not confound e ^ith the next vowel e. For e the tongue ia higher and the lipa are apread more energetically. S 68. c = ^y 6, e, ai, ei French e in pire French c is approxi- mately the same as Eng- lish e in there, but lips are drawn back more energetically than in Eng- lish. Tip of tongue touching lower teeth. Front of tongue raised towards hard palate, but not so high as for French e. See also e in § 28. Exerdse 18. Practice aloud. Use mirror. ! tre I tree pre pr6s ba'le ballet balai belt Mte treiz treize meitj^ maitre !e:z chaise res'pe \ respect ! 1 May also be pronoimced le (lee), te (tes), se (ses, ces). THE ROUNDED FRONT VOWELS 43 Note. Do not confound s with e. For e the tongue is lower and the mouth much wider open. Be careful not to use the English diphthong eJ (as in tray) for final French e, in words like trds, ballet, j' avals, etc. Final vowel sounds are short in French. Learn to distinguish between i*, e, and e in the fol- lowing exercise. Exercise 19. Practice aloud. Use mirror. 1 pri pre pre I I i'si e'te 8''mc ! ; il e'te di^e^re \ [ prix pr6 pr^s J ici 6t^ aim ait 1 il ^.tait ; \ dig^rait I j dz de di \ I rm me mi 1 ] este'tik 1 1 elve'si * 1 d6s des dis ; 1 mai mes mis ] ; esth^tique ; 1 HelY^tie j 1 dais de d dit 1 ; mets 1 mais mit I mie 1 THE ROUNDED FRONT VOWELS i § 69. 1. y- Same position of tongue as for i, but lips are rounded very energetically. See § 63. 2. ^. Same position of tongue as for e, but lips are rounded energetically. 3. ce. Same position of tongue as for e, but lips are rounded. These vowels do not exist in English and are mis- pronounced more frequently by the English-speaking people than most other French sounds. Before at- tempting to learn them, every one should have fully mastered the three corresponding front vowels without lip-rounding, i — e — e. 1 ce, the fourth front vowel with rounded lips, will be given with the other nasal vowels in § 81. 44 VOWELS §70. y = u, d, eu, e(i French i ix sire FRF.Vrn V TN 8ur Tip of tonfnie touches lower teeth. Front of tongue raised high towards hard palate. Lips spread energetically. Same potitimi of tongue, but lips are rounded Tery energetically. Exercise 20. Practice aloud. Use mirror. y I ly^ty'kry \ fy'tyir \ sy:r \ yn kyVhyi eu I lustucru > f utur ! sur, sdr ! une culbute — J i '....1. L- Hold mirror in front of mouth. Say a long »i(a8 in rive). Then round your lips as energetically as possible (as for t/). Keep them in this "rounded" position and pronounce or rather try to pronounce i. If the lips are properly rounded, the sound obtained will be y (as in sur = sy\r). In other words, y is merely an I with lip-rounding. After having learned the sound separately, it is not hard to pronounce it correctly in practically all words. THE ROUNDED FRONT VOWELS 45 Take the word lysty^kry (lustucru = simpleton). Pro- nounce this word as if the vowel-sound were i, not y, in all three syllables, i.e. listi'kri. Then round your lips very energetically and keep them rounded while repeating slowly lis-ti-kri. As the lips are rounded, you will in reality say lysty'Tcry. Before and after rounded vowels, consonants are usually rounded. You can therefore keep the lips in exactly the same posi- tion for the whole word. Practice y in the same way in the following exercise. See also § 63. Exercise 21. Practice aloud. Use mirror. Lips spread si\r \dur sire, cire'dire mi\r mire, myrrhe pi\r \ pire| pis' til pistil si\d I ri\d cid ' ride Same word, but lips rounded sy\r \dy\r sur, stir [ dur my\r mur, mur \py\r pur pys'tyl pustule syid\ry:d sud Irudei Learn to distinguish between y and u in the follow- ing exercise. Both vowels have the same position of the lips, i.e. they are rounded energetically. For y the front of the tongue is raised towards the hard palate, while for u the back of the tongue is raised towards the soft palate. Exercise 22. Practice aloud. Use mirror. y 1 y i; pv'r ! front vowel 1 1 pur syir \ by \ ry sur, sur [ but j rue ny nu, nue syid j sud 1 u \\ puir 1 back vowel 1 1 i (§73) ii^"'^^ su\r 1 bu 1 ru , ! bout [ roue sourd , boue roux nu nous suid 1 sonde • 46 VOWELS §71 ^ = eu, eQ, oeu French e in bl6 French ^ in blen Tip of tonfnie touches lower teeth. Front of tongue raised high towards hard palate, but not so high as for t. Lipa spread energetically. Same position of tongue, but lips are rounded energetically. Exercise 23. Practice aloud. Use mirror. noeud heureose queue queux neutre deux boeufs la ^'n^iz v^ d^'zj La je(ineuse veut deux oeufs. Practice ^ in the same manner as y, Pronotmce a long e\ (e as in th^ = te). Round lips energetically and say again eu The sound obtained will be f^i, as the lips are rounded. Practice ^ also in the word ^^V^ (heureux). Say it first as if it were e»'re (er^). Round THE ROUNDED FRONT VOWELS 47 lips energetically and repeat slowly e'-'re. Eemem- ber that the lips must remain in the same position throughout the word. Be very careful not to give your tongue any other position than that for e. Practice ^ in the same way in the following exercise. See § 63. Exercise 24. Practice aloud. Use mirror. 1 Lips 1 J spread I ; se 1 /e ' ne \ ses, ces ! f^e | nez, n^ ble bl6 de des, d6 ke \ quai ; 1 Same word, ; ! but lips 1 1 rounded j I ceux ! feu | noeud bleu d(/f deux k^ \ queue 1 Learn to distinguish between ^ and o in the follow- ing exercise. The position of the lips is the same for both vowels, i.e. the lips are rounded energetically. Por ^ the front of the tongue is raised towards the hard palate, while for o the back of the tongue is raised towards the soft palate. Pronounce the two sounds, ^ and o, separately before practicing them in the words given below. Exercise 25. Practice aloud. Use mirror. i ^ : 1 front vowel ! feu voeu boeufs peu d^ deux ¥ i ceux ! I \ I back vowel ! i (§ 74) I fo faux vo veau, vos, vaux, vaut ho beau bau baud po pot peau do dos so \ sot, seau, ! saut, sceau j See also Exercise 38, page 57. \/ 48 VOWELS §72. ce = eu, oe, ceu, ue French e in sel French as in seal Tip of tongue touches lower teeth. Front of tongue raised towards hard palate, but not so high as for e. Lips spread. Same position of tongue, but lips are loonded. Exercise 26. Practice aloud. Use mirror. 8oel seul neuf peuple ce:r \ mxir \ oeij ; kce'Joeir heure ! soBur ! oeil \ cueilleur Learn ce in the same way as y and ^. Say a long ci as in meir (= mfere, mer, maire). Round your lips and repeat ei, keeping the lips rounded. You will obtain the sound ce: in this manner. Pronounce the word koe'jceir (cueilleur = fruit-picker), as if it were ke'jeir. Round your lips and repeat the word slowly. As the lips are rounded, you actually say kce'joeir, Pi*actice likewise the words in the following exer- cise. See § 63. THE ROUNDED FRONT VOWELS 49 Exercise 27. Practice aloud. Use mirror. 1 sel Lips spread i;sel,selle, ! 1 celle peir p^re, paire, pair meir mer, mere, maire seir 1 8ir I nsf cerf 1 6re | Same word,!! ^^^ ^""^^^l ii seul rounded |; poeir peur moeir meurt soeir I oeir | noef soeur |heure!neuf Learn to distinguish between oe and o in the follow- ing exercise. Exercise 28. Practice aloud. Use mirror. ! OS j front vowel j poeir 1 koeir j 1 coeur 1 1 choeur soel ! hoeir seul ! beurre oeir heure soeir 1 soeur 1 1 1 back vowel i (§ 75) I poir I koir j port, pore, [ corps ! pore ; cor sol 1 boir sol ! bord oir or, hors soir 1 sort 1 See also Exercise 38, page 57. Practice the three sounds together in the following exercise. For y the lips are rounded as energetically as possible, for ^ a little less, and still less for oe. The tongue is raised very high towards the hard palate for 2/, less high for ^, and still less for oe. y Exercise 29. Practice aloud. Use mirror. S2/ir, s^, sceir sur, ceux, soeur noef, n^, ny neuf, noeud, nu pyir, pur, peu. poeir peur 50 VOWELS THE ROUNDED BACK VOWELS » u — o — 73. u = ou, oQ French u in doox English uu in do. Tip of toDgne drawn back. Maacles of tongue relaxed at first, gradoally becoming tense, hence movement of tongue. Lipe only slightly ronnded. (Dotted line indi- cates movement of tongue, lips, etc. This movement has been exaggerated in the dia- gram in order to show more plainly the difference between French and English.) English <;u is a diphthong. (In Eng- land, however, many people ose only the pnre u,) 1 5, the fourth rounded back vowel, will be described with ^e other naaal vowels in § 83. Tip of tongue drawn back. Back of tongue raised higher towards soft palate than In English. Muscles of the tongue tense. Lips rounded much more energetically than in English. No movement of tongue or lips. French u is a pure vowel. See also § 62, on page 86. THE ROUNDED BACK VOWELS Exercise 30. Practice aloud. Use mirror. 51 ku'ku coucou joujou tu'luiz Toulouse ^u'krut choucroute puir pour See also Exercise 22, page 45. Note. English u as in put, foot, good, etc., does not exist in French. Avoid this English sound in such French words as toute, boulanger, coucou. §74. = 0, au, eau PnENCH IN rose English ou in rose Tip of tongue drawn hack. Back of tongue raised high towards soft palate, hut not so high as for French u. Muscles of toDgue tense. Lips rounded much more energetically than in English. No movement of tongue or lips. French o is a pure vowel. See also § 62, on page 35. Tip of tongue drawn back. Muscles of tongue relaxed at first, gradually becoming tense, hence movement of tongue. Lips rounded less energetically than in French. (Dotted line indicates move- ment of tongue, lips, etc.) English 0^7 is a diphthong. 52 VOWELS Exercise 31. Practice aloud. Use mirror. ko'ko ! bo coco j beau(x) 0*9VtO auffiitAt o\p[ autre lOXM chose kOXM See also Exercise 25, page 47. NoTB. Be very careful not to use the English diphthong ou (as in "so '*) for final French o, in words like coco, beau, chaud, etc. Final vowel sounds are short in French. Do not confound o with the next vowel 9. For o the tongue is higher and farther back and the lips are rounded more energetically. §75. D = o, 00, au, u(m) French in fort English in Ood Tip of tongue teaches lower teeth. Back of tongue raised towards the front part of soft palate, near the middle of the palate. Tongue lower and more in front than for French o. Lips rounded. Tip of tongue drawn back. Back of tongue raised slightly to- wards back part of soft palate, much farther back than in French. Mouth fairly wide open. THE ROUNDED BACK VOWELS 53 Exercise 32, Practice aloud. Use mirror. mono'ldg j kozmopo'lit monologue j cosmopolite kronolo''si chroiiologie fd\r fort mow mort See also Exercise 28, page 49. Instead of learning French o by comparing it with English in God, it can also be learned by comparison with the vowel sound in but. Eound lips energetically and pronounce the English word "but.'' The word will practically sound like the Erench word hot (botte). The tongue should be drawn back slightly, however. Note. Avoid the use of the English diphthong ou (as in '' so ") for final French o (or o) in words like trop, trot, galop. Learn to distinguish between u, o and o in the fol- lowing exercise. Lips rounded as energetically as pos- sible for n, a little less for o, still less for o. Tongue highest for u, lowest for o. Exercise 33. Practice aloud. Use mirror. bo beau(x) nu nous no nos notr notre 1 toir ' to \ I ' tort I tat tu tout bu boue bout bot botte THE TWO ^-SOUNDS § 76. a — a There are two a-sounds in Erench, a and a. They are the lowest of all vowels. Eor a the tongue is more in front than for a. Do not confound a, however, with English a? as in cat. a is called a front vowel, while a is called a back vowel. 54 VOWELS §77. a = a, 4, a, e, (o)i, (o)I, (o)6 French a in patte English as in pat Tip of tongue touches lower teeth. Tongue raised only slightly towards hard palate, near the middle of the palate. Month wide open and some- times drawn back a little at the comers. Tongue higher and more for- ward than for French a. Mouth not so wide open. (The vowel sound commonly pro- nounced in Northern Euglaiid and Scotland in such words as pat, rat, etc., is practically the same as the French sound in patte, rat, etc.) Exercise 34. Practice aloud. Uae mirror. apa'nai$ apanage pana' ma ; panama ; vwa'la la 'fam | yoilk la femme ! ma^dam madame para^graf paragraphs fa'ial fatal kra^nai crayate kama'tal I aba'twair camaval ! abattoir kata'rakt cataracte la 'dam ataka la gardma'lad. La dame attaqua la garde-malade. THE TWO A-SOUNDS 55 §78. a = a, a, (o)i, (o)i, (o)§ French a in pas Tongue farther back than for a. Mouth wide open and not drawn back at the corners. Exercise 35. Practice aloud. Use mirror. I pa ka pa:j tais : pad 1 1 pa-s cas paille tasse paie ; kais'nwa casse-noix pais'drwa passe-droit Learn to distinguish between a and a in the follow- ing exercise. For a the tongue is more in front than for a. Exercise 36. Practice aloud. Use mirror. a'ba abat la, \k pat patte mal mal, malle pal pal, pale a'ba ah bas la las, lacs pa\t pate mad male pad paie 56 VOWELS THE WEAK £- SOUND §79. a = e (on, ai) French a in ne English a in Anna Tip of tougue touches lower teeth. Middle of tongue raised towards middle of pal- ate. Lips roooded. Tongue lower than for French 9, Lips are not rounded. Exercise 37. Practice aloud. Use mirror. h \ t9 " k9 le I te ; que S9'val cheval 89'riig cerise Monsieur faisoDS See also §§ 91-92, elision of a. NoTB. Do not raise the tip of your tongue for 9 ! Most English-speaking people use English a as in Anna or better for both ^ and ce. Learn to distinguish between a, ^, and oe in the following exercise. See also f § 71-72. THE WEAK E-SOtJND 67 1. a. Tip of tongue touches lower teeth. Middle of tongue raised towards middle of palate. Lips rounded. 2. ^. Tip of tongue touches lower teeth. Front of tongue raised high towards hard palate and much more in front than for d. Lips rounded more energetically. 3. 02. Tip of tongue touches lower teeth. Front of tongue raised towards hard palate, but less than for ^. Lips rounded as for a. Exercise 38. Practice aloud. Use mirror. j 1 1 2 3 1 i ^ i 5 i 6 i I S9 1 kd ! d9 ! I 3^ 1 md 1 nd 1 \ se, ce \ que 1 ! de I i ^'^ 1 me 1 ne ; i s^ I k^ i 1 d(/> \ i 3^ 1 m^ 1 n^ i 1 ceux ; queue 1 I deux ] 1 jeu ; meut | 1 [mouvoir] ! noeud } i sce\r 1 k€e\r 1 1 doe\j 1 1 3cen 1 m(E\hl 1 nmf \ 1 soeur 1 coeur ] ! deuil ! 1 jeune I meuble 1 neuf 1 THE FOUR NASAL VOWELS 8 — oe, — U — With nasal vowels the air passes simultaneously- through the mouth and nose, while with all other vowels the air passes only through the mouth. This difference is caused by the raising or lowering of the soft palate. Eeview nasal articulation, § 13. Study carefully the rules in § 100. -- over a vowel indicates that the vowel is nasal. 58 VOWELS §80. g = im, iu, en, yni, yn, iiim, ain, eim, ein French e in tr^ French g in train Tip of tonfi^e loaches lower Tip of toogne remains on lower teeth. Front of ton^^ue raised towards hard palate. Pas- sage through nose closed. Air passes only through mouth. Lips spread. teeth. Front of totifnie a little lower. Passage through nose open, therefore air passes through mouth and nose si- multaneously. Lips spread. Exercise 39. Practice aloud. Use mirror. ! 5-'«tg 1 6ig ; Jiflg i mg i *gw 1 g-'«g \ \ instinct ; bien ; loin \ main \ quinze ; indien ; simple ; • /g ; mg''<^ 1 Jnog I tiibx i ^ rein(8) Rhin : kri I I crin j ; Grains * i 2 pain mg main ; 1 English word 1 ; camp singe saint coin point insUnct 1 French word | 1 in phonetics 1 ! and ordinary ; i spelling ; camp «&3 singe saint coin point instinct \ Do not pronounce any nasal consonant (m or n) after a nasal vowel. Except in liaison a nasal vowel THE FOUR NASAL VOWELS 63 is not followed by a nasal consonant, although we regularly find m or n after the vowel in ordinary spelling. In bon, for instance, we pronounce only two sounds, b and the nasal vowel o. Such pronunciations as the English " bun " or " bong " are ridiculous. For the pronunciation of final m and n in liaison see § 88 and § 100. Learn to distinguish between a nasal vowel and a vowel which is not nasal but followed by a nasal consonant. Pronounce pe — peirij bo — borij etc. Exercise 45. Practice aloud. Use mirror. Nasal vowel. !i pe i 65 > S J d5 i s5 Final m or n !> pain ' bon ] an ! don j son SILENT ][ I I I (done) I Vowel not ij pem [ bon [ am I don \ son NASAL. ;1 peine I bonne I 3,ne ] donne ! sonne Following Ii " ' I (donnes i (sonnes m OR n IS 1 1 ; | I donnent) | sonnent) pronounced [I I I " I ii .'. ' , '. !' me ' pie j se \ krcl i re T,, 'i main ! plein ; sain \ cran ' reinCs) Nasal vowel. ' . . ' -r^-, . -r, II samt • Khm Final m or n ,i i i . ! i II I I sem I silent II ' ' . I II I 1 seing I I !! I I ceint j I Vowel not j[ meim [ plem \ sem I kram | rem nasal. m meme I pleine I saine j cr§,ne I r§ne Following I' j plaine j sc6ne ,' i reine m OR n is I! | I Seine j | pronounced !i I I ! 1 PART II. HOW TO USE THE FRENCH SOUNDS IN CONNECTED SPEECH GENERAL RULES STRESS (ACCENT ») § 85. I. Stress in a Word In French the last syllable of a word is usually very slightly accented. Stress (accent) is indicated by ' before the accented syllable. (Le personnage = la per 80 'nai3, ^^ pestilence = la pes ti 'ttlw, la nation = la na* 'sjoy Tinfluence = te» Jly 'fli*.) In English the difference between an accented and an unaccented syllable is very marked. Sometimes unaccented syllables are hardly audible. In the word "comfortable" the second syllable, -for-, is so weak that we frequently suppress the vowel sound altogether in rapid speech (= comf table). In French all syllables of a word are equally strong except the last one, which is only slightly stronger * Accent in ordinary spelling is a sign over a vowel (6, 6, 6). There are three accents, the acute, grave and circumflex. In some cases these accents show a difference in pronunciation between vowels (6t6 = e'te, §tre = e:^r, donnferent = do'neir) ; in other cases they show a difference in meaning between two words (ou, oil, la, \k). These accents never indicate stress. See also 6, 6, §, in § 106. 64 STRESS (ACCENT) 65 than the others. In the word " confortable " (= A;5' for 'taxht) the first two syllables are practically alike, while the last one ( ^taibV) is given a little more stress. This stress however is weak in comparison with the stress on the first syllable of the English word " com- fortable.'' Exercise 46. Practice aloud. ' before syllable in- dicates very weak accent. " before syllable indicates strong accent. Syllables without sign are unaccented. Pronounce each English word with the correspond- ing French word. To get correct accent tap hand on table or foot on floor for each accented syllable. English French emplacement =em"jpZe7sm9n« emplacement = ct^plas'md pneumatic = nju^msBtik pneumatique = pn^ma'tik pestilence = "pestildns omnibus = "omnihds pestilence =pesti'la:s omnibus = omni'byis omnipotence =j)m"nij9ai( a )ns omnipotence = omnipo'tdLxs hydrophobia = '/ia/(Z.«a'7*o C7i>/9 hydrophobie= idrofo'bi nonsense = ^'nonsdus non-sens = no^'sdis commemoration = kd'mema- commemoration = komemo- ra^'sp hieroglyphic ='hajdJ,o"gUfik hi^roglyphique = jerogU'Jik commencement = kd"mens- mdnt commencement = komcl's'md, comparison = kdm"p3euisdn comparaison = ko^pare^'zo If a word is emphasized, the accent may frequently be shifted from the last syllable to one of the others. 66 STRBSS (ACCENT) EitrRATio PioiriniciATioN beaucoup charmant impossible 'boiJcH 'tiposiibl The "weak-e" sound (a) is never accented. (La renard = h r(d)'?iair, qu'est-ce que = 'kes kd.) S 86. II. Stress in a Sentence In a sentence all important words are accented on the last syllable, or on one of the other syllables if a word is to be especially emphasized. (Elle regarde le professeur = tl rd'gard h profe'aoRir. C'est charmant =s 8e 'Jiarma, etc.) Exercise 47. Practice the weak French accent in the following sentences. Take one sentence at a time and practice it about ten times in succession. Tap on floor or on table for every accented syllable. Practice aloud. Nous la regardons. . . . = Do not say: . . . . nil la r{9)gar*d5. l"nul9r9"ffardo.'] J'ai f erm6 la ports. . . . = Do not say : . . . . Seferme la 'port. [3« "ferme U "port,'] Parlez-vous fran^ais? . . = Do not say : . . . . D a perdu son pardessus. . = Do not say : . . . . parle vu fra^' 9zf i"parle vu "fraisef] iljL per'dy so pardo'sy. [i7 a "perdy so "pardosy.] LIAISON 67 On pardonne aux enfants. = Do not say : .... Y a-t-il un t^l^phone public par ici? = Do not say : .... par' don oz d^'/dl. [o "pardon o "zdifa.^ j^a t il ce tele'foin py'hlik par i'sif l"ja t ii ce ^'teldfoin ''pyhlik par "isi?^ Tu ne fais pas attention! . = Do not say : .... Nous avons tons bon app^tit. = Do not say : .... Le gargon a fini de reciter. = Do not say : ty w(a) /e 'paz at&^'sp t [ty nd "fepaz a"tcl\sjo /] 71UZ avo 'tu\s bon ape'ti. l"nuz ovo ^'tu\s bon "apeti.l^ Id gar' so afi'ni d{d) resi'te. [Id "garso a "fini do "resile.'] LIAISON § 87. When a word begins with a vowel or h mute it is frequently linked with the preceding word, unless a pause has to be made. The word " liaison " is generally used to indicate the linking with the following word of a final consonant which is ordinarily silent. (E^= e, eii-\\ — z't il; nou^ = nu, nous avons = nuz a^vo.) The word " liaison " ought, however, to be applied to all other cases where a final consonant sound is car- ried over to the following word with initial vowel, or even to cases where a final vowel sound is connected with the initial vowel of the following word. (II a = i'l a; une belWecole = yn hzl e'kol; Louise/ Henri = Iwi e di^'ri.) We shall first consider the liaison of consonants which are ordinarily silent and then all other cases. .68 LIAISON § 88. I. Linking of Consonants Which Arb Okdinarily Silent 1. In French final consonants are usually silent. They are, however, frequently pronounced when followed by a word beginning with a vowel or h mute. (U^ = ce, un an = ct'w S; ino^ =s-m5, moa X^bit = wi3w a'bi; \e/ = /f, les Kommes = le'z om.) 2. No liaison is made before h aspirate. (Le/ hiboux « le i'bu ; hieyL hardi = bjt a/di.) No stop must be made between the two vowel sounds, however. 3. The t in et is never linked with the following word. (Louis eX Henri = Iwi e ii*'ri; un crayon ejif une plume =cc krt'fi e yn 'plym,) 4. When a word ends in two or more consonants, usually the last one is carried over. (E^t-il = t't il; de teaiG(s en temps a rfa Ulz d 't^; sa^s argent a snz ar'ia.) 6. The consonant which is carried over always be- longs to the following syllable. (Nous avons un ine as nU'Z a-vO'Z ce-'n am,) In English we find similar cases : an ]io\iT is pronounced a-nour. There is no difference in pronunciation between un auteur and un noteur (ce-n o'ioexr), or between un long qua!* and un long ais (ce D-'kt), But there is a differ- ence between les z^ros {le ze*'ro) and les h^ros Qe e^'ro)^ because hiros begins with h aspirate. See § 88, 2. ' quai may also be pronounced ke. LIAISON 69 6. In liaison plosives are generally voiceless (un grand homme = ^ gra't om), fricatives are generally voiced (les arbres = le'z arbr). Exception : The frica- tive J remains always voiceless. (La vache est noire = la va\ 8 'nwa\r.) 7. Liaison is made less in conversation than in declamation. It is better to make too few than too many liaisons. Link words only when they belong logically together. Link, for instance, pronoun and verb, article and noun, adjective and noun, etc. (Nous avons = nuz a'voj les hommes = le'z om^ un petit enfant = ce ptit S''/S.) But do not say : Id ^ne/ e la ^bu^ (le ne^ et la bouche), ale/ o'z o (alle/aux eaux), done ma'i^ (E 'pij) (donnez-m'eji'uD peuV [Do not carry over the consonants which have been crossed out.] § 89. II. Liaison in All Other Cases 1. When a final consonant sound is regularly pro- nounced in a word which stands alone or before a pause it is carried over and is pronounced as part of the following word, if that word begins with a vowel or h mute. (Elle = eZ, elle a = eV a. La chaise = la '\^\z^ la chaise est grande = la \2,\z e 'graxd, Cher [ch^re] = Jeir, cher ami [chere amie] = Jeir a'mi.) f Le canif est sur la table. [ ^ ^^^ ^® carried over be- NoTE. 1 , , , ^ , i cause it is always pro- W^kaln^f^ml^'t^H- \ nounced in that word. 70 LIAISON (Le crayon est but la table. l9 krc'jo tgyrla 'taibj. n must not be carried over because it is ordinarily silent See also § 88 on linking of consonants which are ordinarily si- lent, especially part 1 and 7. 2. If the last sound (not letter!) of a word is a vowel and the following word begins also with a vowel sound (not letter !), no stop must be made between the two words. Connect the vowels as you do with e and A in create, or with o and e in poetical. (Qui a ^cout^ ? « 'ki a ekn'te ? Monsieu/ Henri = masjfi n*'ri. II -vxefiji a onz/ X^ures = U 'vjt a Wz ceir.) Exercise 48. Repeat each sentence several times until it can be pronounced without stopping between words. Practice aloud. En haut et en bas. U est en Espagne. II aime k id^aliser. H 'o e a *ba. U et dn et'paji. U eim a ideali''ze. U ^crit k un ami. Je les ai entendu(e)s. £Ue montre k U e'kri a chi a'mL ^ Uz e d'tS'^dy, el moitr a lire aux enfants. lis ont une dispute k table. J'ai appris 'liir oz (l''fH, Uz U yn dis'pyt a 'taibl- $e apri avec peine que vous avez eu la fi^vre en arrivant k Ypres. avek 'pern ka tuz ave(z) y la 'JJeivr An ari'vd a 'iipf. n 6tait une fois un harangueur ennuyeux et importun. il e'tet yn 'fwa ce ara''gceir S'nyv'j^ e l*pDr't&. ELISION 71 ELISION § 90. In Spelling. Ordinary spelling sanctions elision only in a few cases. 1. The letter e is usually elided in monosyllabic words before a vowel or h mute (leTenfant, k^homme, i/ai, il n^'est pas). 2. The letter e is usually elided in words ending in -que before a vowel or h mute (lorsque^il, quelqu^un, jusquj^^ a . . .). 3. The letter a is elided in the word " la " (not in "la") before a vowel or h mute (1^'encre, lat'heure, ly'eau, je 1^'ai). 4. The letter i is elided in the word si before " il " and '' ils '' (s/ils). § 91. In Pronunciation. In pronunciation many more elisions occur, espe- cially in ordinary conversation. Most important of all is the elision of the " weak-e " sound — a. The more rapidly a sentence is pronounced, the more fre- quently 9 is dropped. In singing a is rarely dropped, in reading poetry more frequently, in careful reading of prose still more, and most of all in conversation. Beginners ought to drop the a sound less than more ad- vanced students. In the first passages of the Phonetic Transcriptions, pp. 98-111, a has seldom been omitted. § 92. Elision of a. 1. Final a is dropped regularly before a pause ex cept in monosyllabic words. 72 ELISION BiroBB A Paum quatiy katx quatre chais^ katr9 'lti9 "* • la tabl/ la 'taibl Ja table bleu/ fermez-l0 Bur le banc ftrme li «yr U 'ba 2. Except in the first syllable of a sentence a is dropped, unless by this elision more than two conso- nants are brought together. See also p. 73, section 3. EzampL«0 tm chffvdX le p^iit MTfS II me i/gaid/. S 'jval h p(i 'frctr il nw r'gard. C^est y p^i/. Je d/ le feriD^rai pas. 9t I 'p€:r. 5* II U fcnnre 'pa. >— ^ >-^ fi mang^tout c/qu*il y a dans 1/gard^ manger. il mO;$ 'tu i kiVja da I gard ma^'y. Three or even four consonants may be brought to- gether if the third consonant is /, r, w, y, or j. rhomm/ que if \n\ monti^ dans y bois n om k9 5 l^i 'mbxti^ dOj 'bwa je 1/ crois nous 1/ prenons Nous nff f Iftnons pas. X9 V'krvoa nu t pn'nb nu n/lamb 'pa, dans ]^ pnita da I 'pyi In a few cases three consonants can be brought to- gether if the first consonant is / or r. Chefch/ mon pain parc^ qu*il march^ sals^pareill/ /er/ mo 'p€, pank il 'mar! aalspa'nij LENGTH OF SOUNDS 73 3. a is generally pronounced in the first syllable of a sentence. Je 1^ preuds regardez-moi le cli/val 3d I 'prd rd garde 'mwa Id 'Ival LENGTH OF SOUNDS § 93. I. Vowels The French language is very inconsistent as regards length of vowels ; therefore few practical rules can be given. The rules given here apply only to words when pronounced separately. ' In many words where vowels are long when the word is pronounced sepa- rately, the vowel may be shortened in connected speech if the word is unaccented. Compare English " he " in " Not he? " and in " He saw us." Word Alone Word Unaccented I sur I sur une table 1 sy\r \ syr yn 'taibl I pour J pour Penfant \pu\r \pur lU^'fU, \ after vowel indicates that vowel is long. » after vowel indicates that vowel is half-long. Vowel not followed by any sign is short. § 94. Rules for Length of Vowels 1. Final vowels are short, (papa = pa^pa, Parmee = lar^me, tu = ty, ici = i^si, ami(e) = a' mi, beau = bo, ete = eUe.) When a final consonant is not pronounced, the preceding vowel is to be considered final, (mo^ = 74 LENGTH OF SOUNDS m3, Je/= le, le ne/:»U 'ne, nou/ donnorf;^= nn d./iu, le te^f:t; boi/aB bo; bla^c = bin ; so^ = «3 ; \xji= 6e. In liaison: son ami = sjn a'mi; un homroe = ct^i om. When "m" or **n" it followed by a vowel, or before <*mm" or "nn*', the preceding vowel is not nasal and « m *' or ** n '' must be pronounced. Examples : ami = a'mi ; une = yn ; bonne = bon; comment = ko'mSL; femme ^fam. The rules given below for the pronunciation of all the letters of the alphabet are by no means ex- haustive. With some letters it is hard to give any definite or practical rules. This is true especially of the vowels. Wherever there are exceptions to the rules only the most common ones have been given. PRONUNCIATION Of LEMfiRS n I-} a. c« II rS -tJ II Pi rt d C3 .^ a. ^ c« c« i^H II II u ci 0) f^ o 1 .^ -§ 11 5 h •S.-I ^ r— t OQ 1 ^ CO ^ .s II II to ^ •-. 'd d II <^ c« PI 5 u II ^ s> ce rt ^§ .. 2 g bO a Fi 05 II 8 ^ CQ ^ crt § :3 02 S O II i ill - > o S s II II 1 "^ > 03 ^ 4J '^ ^ 0) II s h ^ 8 «« M 0)0© u" "? p, O O o ^ • -JS 0) ? ^ rt ^ /'-N a> ^ 3 d CM <4-l CO •1 1 4-> i l>> ■M > 8 eg 2 2 2 ? ^ c« 9 06 'S ^ «2 a - cf g 1 c > s •a 'd .23 0* ,0 05 1 2 1 8 <[ > ^ c 1 2 1 0) 1 II II ►45 II II 1 II -- Z^ i "^ 1 r45 II II 'S C» Oi II § -s C 0* eo s ^ > c^ . 82 PRONUNCIATION OF LETTERS i :? ;?^ « 4! II II I II 2 II •! uj II fe Si * c-s il -81 t o II ^r 1 §"2 ' * I-, 2 « o '^7^ mZ o c: •■ •— » **" « « «> V II II II II s ii — o 8| 2 3 1 II II II ^ '3 c «• o Q S ^ O • • • 'S '^ g^ • • o s "^ o d f=5 bi) r-l '^ rH »C0 CO Cu II II II 3 .. :;. ^ a § ^ ^ 'S -s f 84 PRONXmCUTION OF LETTERS a i i II I 'i II t' II I ill 9 * ^ " I" "i 9 •a o •a •§ II S'S « o If 11 II - .. II s •5.^ «i a. "B S^ 8 8 S • II -^ a o •o I as :s:i I g ? I ? 8 ^ ! S I PRONUNCIATION OF LETTERS 85 1^ ^ ^ M w ■9 II g .^ ^ II ►O '^ NX» a to C8 5 ^ ^ P) £f ?e c^ e § ^-^ II II -^ il bJ3 P to ^ c^S i'' 'a '3 ^ > ?e S, II (D JC^ p^ OQ II S S,Sj§ too g 'I .& a 11^ be S ce <£> I II Oi eg I I ^ CJ o o o II II CZ2 ?3s Cft II II bD §} t^ s ^ 2 ^ 86 PRONUNCIATION OP LETTERS S -s ^3 § = 8 5*8 I la s < H s s li o o £0) •S o M S If il s i s II II II II •a ^ -r* II II 11 II II l||=r 3 2 A PRONUNCIATION OF LETTERS 87 00 CO ^ ^ » -< X ^ § II a I II ^ a II > ^a &b 1" a II -^ § -i II .s5 -g H § ^1 to >- •^ g II 11 a 9 fl S o f^ '-^ II II S- r ,13 I 8 ^ 1-1 O (CO II II II II 03 d M a •1^ "■:* m CO 00 ^ a ^ «» w O ,-^o © =s ri- II « o ? O (M 88 PRONUNCIATION OF LETTERS 3 n & s II a o " ■! 1 i> S S e i 4 § 5» II * 8 1 II - 8 -^ II £ M --^- (4 u *« Ok ^ 1 II w II I ^ s ^ JS I II » II £ § J • I • £ ^ • 5 O u i:§ l|l -li g MS II II 5 -• o - S CO ell si:: is." II a o • O o o o II II II 8 u o 00 s o a o II s a 6^ PRONUNCIATION OF LETTERS S2 ^ C3 II , o ?« o II 8 . II & § § s II 1 J© -M° ^ >?^ « g o II II II ^ a 1 9 5^ S ^ II II Ph la >• ft a -J *^ cd PI III -^ § t» 03 03 J=3 00 M bo 2 o =^& e09 93 PROmmCIATlON OF LETTERS t 11 1 O ^1 is* - * 3 la -^ I II I -s Ilia -i - 8 s s I 2 -^ ] ©I S 3 PRONUNCIATION OF LETTERS 93 ^S ^ % 1 +j ^ ^ >o II Ch c« o » o ^ II ^ rt » o c^ %' ^ ^ 03 03 "KS 02 3 i^ . '^ & II -I C« .CO II ^ ce a — ' ^ rt e« ii< M 2 o - .« O ^ II 05 M II •^ CO M a :3 8 o II a ?s II 11 o p *a g 1^ « 2 M -2 I 1 ? CO 2^ 2 « 94 PRontmciATion of letters NUMERALS 95 § 127. PRONUNCIATION OF NUMERALS For most numerals from 1-20 there are two or three different pronunciations. This depends on whether they stand alone, be- fore a word beginning with a vowel, or before a word beginning with a consonant. (Six = sis. Six enf ants = siz d''fcl. Six livres = si 'liiv^.) Before months the numerals keep their original pronunciation. 20 (vingt) is very irregular. See also 80, 81, 82. Spelling Alonk Before Bkfobb Con- Spelling Peonun- Vowel sonant CIATION 1 Un, une ce, yn an, yn a,2/n 30 trente trait 2 deux d^ d^z d^ 40 quarante ka'rait 3 trois trwa trwaz trwa 60 cinquante se-'kctit 4 quatre katr katr 'katr9 60 soixante swa's&it 5 6 cinq six seik sis se:k siz se si 70 soixante-dix swascl't- 'dis 7 sept set set se 80 quatre- ka'trsve 8 huit yit %lit yi vingts 9 neuf ncef noRV nee 81 quatre- katr9- 10 dix dis diz di vingt-un ve^ 11 onze o\z oiz oiz 82 quatre- katrd- 12 douze duiz duiz duiz vingt-deux ve'df^ 13 treize treiz treiz treiz 90 quatre- katrd- 14 quatorze ka'torz ka'torz ka'torz vingt-dix ve'dis 15 quinze keiz keiz keiz 100 cent sa 16 seize seiz se:z seiz 101 cent un sa^ 17 dix-sept dis'set dis' set dis'se o mil, mille \demi'1oe 18 dix-huit di'ziiit di'zuit di'z'qi o un millier 19 dix-neuf diz'noef diz'ncev diz'ncB '"' 20 vingt ve vet ve o 21 vingt et un VE'tjjB ve'tj^n ve^te^ g un million ce mi'lj^ 22 vingt- deux ve-t'd^ vM'di^z vM'd^ fH ■■I 3. 4. Le premier . . la premiere . . le (la) deuxi6me le second . . . la seconde . . le (la) troisifeme le (la) quatri6me l9 prg'mje la prd'mjeir h (la) d^^'zjem h »9'go la Sd'goid Id (la) trwa''zjem h (la) katri'em 96 PRONUNCIATION OP THE ALPHABET ETC. § 128. -Z UWCIATION OP 129. P«^^^ ^ *^^' DAYS NCIATION OP THE I Alphabbt OP THB WBBK a a dimanche dVmail b be lundi Uk^'di ae mardi mar^di d de mercredi merkrd'di e e jeudi l^^'di f e/ vendredi va^dra'di g 3« samedi sam'di h i ka tl em en i J k fi tOi\ PRONUWCUTIOH OF TH« * **<* MOHTHS 1 m n Janvier f^vrier mars fevri'€ mara o P pe Icy e\r es te y ve dublave iks avril mai a'vri(l) me T 8 t U V w X juin juillet ao(it 3y> (3Yt» u (a'u) septembre octobre novembre d^cembre ae(pytaibr ok'tobr no'vUibjr de'a&ibr y igrek z zed PART III. PHONETIC TRANSCRIP- TIONS FOR ORAL PRACTICE Prose §§ 132-137 : Very slow and careful pronunciation, pp. 98-111.. §§ 138-142 : Pronunciation in ordinary reading, pp. 112-123. §§ 143-144 : Rapid conversational pronunciation, pp. 124-133. Poetry §§ 145-149 : Very slow and careful pronunciation, pp. 134-141. § 131. NOTES ON THE PHONETIC TRANSCRIP^ TIONS 1. In the beginning, drill on one sentence at a time. Eepeat each sentence at least ten times in succession, at first very slowly, gradually increasing the speed. It is better to practice one sentence ten times than to read ten sentences only once. Always read aloud. 2. Eeview rules for liaison (§§ 87-89), for elision (§§ 90-92) and for accent (§§ 85-86). 3. The sign between words indicates that no stop must be made between words. It is generally used where beginners would be apt to make a pause. 4. The endings -le, -me and -re, after a consonant, vary in their pronunciation according to their position. Before a pause the consonant is voiceless and e is silent : C'est la table = ss la ^taibl. Before a vowel the consonant is voiced and e is silent: Je montre un crayon = 39 moitr oe, kre^jo. Before a consonant both the consonant and the vowel are pronounced : La table de mon frere = la taibh d(9)mdfreir; Je montre men crayon = 3a moitra m6 kre^jo. See also § § 91-92, 97 98 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Very slow and careful pronunciation. PROSE § 182. LA SALLE D£ CLASSE Le professeur : C'est le livre. C'est la chaise. C'est le crayon. C'est un livre. C'est une table. C'est une fendtre. Qu'estrce que c'est que cela, mon- 6 sieur Roche? M. Roche : C'est un crayon. Le profetteor: Oui, c'est juste. — Je montre le mur. Voici le mur. Mademoiselle Lebrun, montrez le mur. 10 Bfiie Lebrun : Voici le mur. Le professeur : Oui, c'est exact — Je montre la porte. Voili une porte. Montrez la porte, madame Didier. Bff™« Didier : Voil4 la porte. Le professeur : Non, c'est faux. Ce n'est pas la porte, 16 c'est la f enfitre. — Voici un livre, voici deux livres. II y a deux livres sur la table. Combien de livres y a-t-il sur la table, Henri ? Henri : II y a deux livres sur la table. Le professeur : C'est qa. — Void un crayon. Oil est le 20 crayon, Henriette ? Henriette : Le crayon est sur la table. Le professeur: C'est juste. II est sur la table. — Voili trois crayons. Ou sont les crayons ? FOR ORAL PRACTICE 99 Very slow and careful pronunciation. PROSE § 132. la 'sal dd 'klais h profe'soeir: se Id 'liivr, se la '^eiz, se Id kre'jo. set 6e Hhvr. szt yn 'taibl, set yn fd'neitr. kes ka Sik 'sa, masj^ 'raj ? masj^ VoJ ; set oe kre'jo, 5 Id profe'soeir: 'loi, se '^yst. — 39 '7noitrd h 'my\r, vwa'si Id 'myir, madmwa'zel Id'bro^, mo'tre Id 'myir, maclmica'zel Id'hrae : vwa'si Id 'myxr, la profe'soeir: 'wi, set eg'zakt, — 39 'moitrd la 'port, vwa'la yn 'port, mo'tre la 'port, ma'dam di'dje, 10 ma' dam di'dje : viva'la la 'jjort, la profe'soeir: 'no, sc 'fo, sd ne pa la 'port, se la fd'neitir, — vwasi 'oe 'liivr, vwasi 'd^ 'liivr. ilj a 'd^ 'liivi*d syr la 'taibl, ko^'hje da 'liivr j atil syr la 'taibl, dL^'ri f a''ri: ilj a 'd^ 'liwra syr la 'taibl, 15 la profe'soeir: se 'sa, — vwa'si oe kre'jo, u e Id kre'jo^ a^'rjet f dt''rjet: Id kre'jo e syr la 'taibl. Id profe'soeir : se '^yst, il e syr la 'taibl. — vwa'la 'trwa kre'jo, u 'so le kre'jo f 20 100 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Very slow and careful pronunciation. Un ilhve : Les crayons sont sur la chaise. Le professeur : Ce n'est pas juste. Les crayons ne sont pas sur la chaise, ils sont sur le livre. — Je regarde la porte. Eegardez la porte. Regardez le 6 crayon. Monsieur Roche regarde la porte, 11 ne regarde pas le crayon. — Le prof esseur est grand, la table est grande. Le crayon est petit, la plume est petite. Les professeurs sont grands; les tables sont grandea. Les crayons sont petits et 10 les plumes sont petites. — Comment est la table ? Une dhrt : La table est « grand ». Le prof esseur ; Mais non ! La table n'est pas c grand », elle est grande. — H^p^tez : La table est grande, le professeur est grand. 15 Les ^^ves: La table est grande, le professeur est grand. Le professeur : Qu'est-ce que c'est que cela, C^cile ? C^ile : Ce sont deux plumes. Le professeur : Qui, ce sont deux plumes. Combien de 20 plumes y a-t-il sur la table, J^mile? Emile : Je ne sais pas, monsieur. Le professeur : R^pondez, mademoiselle Dupin. Mile Dupin : II y a quatre plumes sur la table. Le professeur : C'est Qa. FOR ORAL PRACTICE 101 Very slow and careful pronunciation. Sen e'leiv : le kre'jo so syr la '^eiz. la profe'scBir: sd m ^pa '^yst, le Icre'p nd so 'pa syr la ^l^\Zy il 'so syr Id 'liivr. — 39 rd'gard la 'port* rdgar'de la 'port, rdgar'de Id kr^'jo, mdsj^ 'ro\ rd'gard la 'port, il na ragard 'pa la kre'jo. — la pro- 5 fe'scBir e 'grclj la 'taibl e 'graid, la kre'jo e pa'ti, la 'plym e pa' tit. le profesoeir so 'grU; le taibla so 'graid. le kre'jo so pa'ti e le 'plym so pa' tit. — ko'mU e la 'taibl f yn e'hiv : la 'taibl e«'gra». 10 la profe'soeir: 'mei 'no! la 'taibla ne pa n'grd)), el e >„_• 'graid. — repe'te: la 'taibl e'grdtid, la profe'soeir e 'grU. lez e'leiv : la 'taibl e 'graid, la profe'soeir e 'gra. la profe'soeir: kes ka sek 'sa, se'sil f 16 se'sil : sa so 'd^ 'plym. la profe'soeir : 'wi, sa so d^ 'plym. ko'bje da 'plym j at il syr la 'taibl, e'mil f e'mil : 3a n(a) 'se pa, ma'sj^. la profe'soeir : repo^'de, madmwa'zel dy'pe. 20 madmwa'zel dy'pe: il j a 'katra 'plym syr la 'taibl. la profe'soeir : se 'sa. 102 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Very slow and careful pronunciation. § 133. MAXIMES L'amour-propre est le plus grand de tous les flatteurs. Le mal que nous faisons ne nous attire pas tant de persecution et de haine que nos bonnes quality. 6 Ceux qui s'appliquent trop aux petites choses de- yiennent ordinairement incapables des grandes. II est plus honteux de se d^fier de ses amis que d'en dtre tromp^. On ne donne rien si lib^ralement que ses oonseils. 10 On ne loue d'ordinaire que pour ^tre lou^. L- II n'appartient qu'aux grands bommes d'avoir de grands d^fauts. Le d^sir de paraltre habile empdehe souvent de le devenir. 16 Nous aimons toujours ceux qui nous admirent, et nous n'aimons pas toujours ceux que nous admirons. II y a dans la jalousie plus d'amour-propre que d'amour. On pent 6tre plus fin qu'un autre, mais non pas plus 20 fin que tous les autres. Les yieux fous sont plus fous que les jeunes. On ne se bl&me que pour §tre lou^. Francois de La Rochefoucauld. FOR ORAL PRACTICE 103 Very slow and careful pronunciation. § 133. ma'ksim lamuxr 'propr e Id 'ply 'grot dd 'tu le fla'toeir. Id 'mal kd nufd'zo na nuz a'tiirpa Ha dd perseky'sjo e dd 'em kd no 'bon kali'te, 's^ ki sa'plik Hro o pd'tit ^oiz dd^vjcu ordineir'mSS E'ka'paibld de 'grUid. il 8 'ply d''t^ dd sd de'fje dd sez a' mi kd dWn eitra tro^'pe. nd don 'rje si liheraVwxl kd se ko^'seij. nd 'lu dordi'mir kd pu'r eitrd 'Iwe. 10 il napar'tje ko 'gr^'z om davwair dd 'grS, de'fo. Id de'ziir dd pa'reitr a'bil dt^'peil su'vdt dd Id dd- v(a)'mir. nuz e^'mo tu\u\r 's6 ki nuz ad'miir, e nu ne^mo 'pa tu'^uir 's^ kd nuz admi'ro, 15 il'j a ddt la ^alu'zi ply damuir ^proprd kd da'muir, p^'t eitrd ply '/e koe'n oitVy me no 'pa ply 'fe kd 'tu le'z oitr. le 'vj^ 'fu so 'ply 'fu kd le '302/1. 3 nd Sd ^blaim kd pu'r eitrd 'Iwe, 20 frU^'swa dd la rojfu'ko. 104 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Very slow and careful pronunciation. § 134. LA FRANCE (Lettre du comte de Chesterfield k son fils.) La FraDce est, k tout prendre, le plus beau pays de PEurope : car il est tr^ grand, tr^s ricbe, et tr^s fer- 6 tile ; le climat est admirable, et il n'j fait jamais trop chaud, comme en Italie et en Espagne: ni trop froid, com me en SuMe et Danemarck. Ce royaume est bom^ au nord par la mer qui s'appelle la Mancbe ; au sud par la mer M^terran^. La France n'est s^pa- 10 r^e de Pltalie que par les Alpes, qui sont de grandes montagnes, couvertes de neige la plus grande partie de I'ann^ ; et les monts Pjr^n^es, qui sont encore de grandes montagnes, la s^parent de I'Espagne. Les Franqais, en g^n^ral, ont beaucoup d'esprit ; ils 15 sont aussi tr^s braves. L'ile-de-France Paris, la capitale de tout le royaume, est dans Plle- de-France; elle est situ^ sur la riviere de Seine. G'est une grande ville, mais pas si grande que Londres. 20 § 135. LE TABAC Les anciens ne connaissaient pas le tabac : c'est une plante originaire d'Am^rique et dont les Europ^ens font usage depuis moins de trois si^cles. Elle est FOR ORAL PRACTICE 105 Very slow and careful pronunciation. § 134. la 'Mis ('letra dy 'koit da (t)lester'Jild a so 'Jis,) la 'frais e, a tu 'praidrdy h 2)ly 'ho p^H da I oe!rop: Tear il e tre 'gra, tre 'nj, e trefer'til; la kli'ma et admi- 'raibl, e il ni fe ^a'me tro '^o, kom an ita'li e an es'pa]i : 5 711 tro 'frwa^ kom a 'siieid e dan' mark, sa rwa'joim e hor'ne o 'noir par la 'meir ki sa'pel la 'maij; o 'syd par la 'meir meditera'ne. la 'frais m sepa're da lita'li ka par le'z alp, ki so da 'graid mo^'taji, kuvert da 'nei3 la ply 'grdlid par'ti da la'ne; e le 'mo pire'ne, ki sot d^'koir 10 da 'gra\d mo^'taji, la se'pair da les'paji. le frdi^'sBy dt ^ene'ral, bo^'ku des^pri, il sot o^si tre 'braiv. 'Ill da 'frdtis pa'riy la kapi'tal da 'tu la rwa'joim, e da 'lil da 'frais; 15 d e si'tiie syr la ri'vjeir da 'sem. set yn fgraid 'vil, me 'pa si 'grUxd ka 'loidr. § 135. lata'ba lez dt^'sje na kone'se pa la ta'ba : set yn 'pldlit ori'^i'neir dame'rik e 'do lez oerope'efot y^zai^ dapy^i 'mwe da 'trwa20 'sjeikL el et a'nyel, la 'semi komd^s'mU dy pre^'tdt, 106 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Very slow and careful pronunciation. annuelle, on la s^me au commencement du printemps, puis on la transplante dans iin sol pr^par^, on en coupe le sommet pour s'opposer k la floraison, ne laissant qu'une dizaine de feuilles k la tige. On Tarrache lors- 6 qu'elle est mOre et on la fait s^her. Ensuite on met ces tiges en monceaux pendant une ou deux semaines pour leur faire subir une esp^ce de fermentation. C'est alors qu'on d^tache les feuilles pour en faire des bottes, les r^unir en carottes, les r^uire en poudre, les 10 toumer en cigares et enfin les couper et laminer. § 136. LA FONTAINE A Chateau-Thierry, dans TAisne, vivait au dix- septi^me si^cle un excellent homme de moeurs fort simples, qui ^tait charg^ d'inspecter les eaux et for^ts. 16 II passait, en effet, une grande partie de son temps dans les bois. II restait tout songeur sous un arbre pendant des heures enti^res, oubliant souvent le moment de diner, ne s'apercevant pas parfois de la pluie qui tombait. II jouissait du plaisir d'etre dans 20 la campagne, il regardait et observait tons les animaux ; il s'int^ressait aux allies et venues de toutes les bStes des champs, grandes ou petites. £t les animaux lui faisaient penser aux hommes ; il retrouvait dans le FOR ORAL PRACTICE 107 Very slow and careful pronunciation. prii la trdt's'plctit dd,z de 'sol prepa're, on 3 *kup Id so'me pursopo'^ze a laflo^re^'zo, no h'^sdt kyn dv'zein do 'foeij a la 'tii^. la'raj lorskd e 'myir e o la 'fe se'Je. U^'syit 'me se tii^2 md''so pdt'ddt 'yn u 'd^ 5(a) 'mein pur loeir 'feir sy'biir yn es[pes do fermSt^ta''sjd. set a'loir ko5 de'taj le 'foeij pur 3 'feir de 'bot, le rey'niir U ka'rot, le re'dtiiir U 'puidr, le tur'ne S si'gair e di^'fe le ku'pe e lami'ne. § 136. lafo^Hen a \a'to tje'rif ddt 7ein, vVve(t)o dis'setjem 'sjeikl dm ek- lo se'Wt om do 'moer(s) 'foir 'seipl, ki ete Jar'se de'spek'te le'z o efo're, il pa^'se, Une'fe, yn 'grctid par'ti do so Hdi del le 'bwa, il reste 'tu so^'^oeir suz os'n arbro pU'dd, de'z oeir S,*'tje:r, ubli'ct su^vct lo mo'mdt do dv^ne, no saper- so'va pa par'fwa do la 'pliii ki to^'be, il ^wi'se dyph^'ziir 15 deitro d(l la ka^'paji, il rogar^de e opser've tu lez ani'mo; il sMere'se o'z ale e vo'ny do 'tut le 'beit de 'lU, 'grdiid u po^tit, e lez animo liiifo'zepdt^'se o'z om; il rotru've dU lo 108 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Very slow and careful pronunciation. renard la ruse, dans le loup la f^rocit^, dans le chien la fid^lit^y dans le pigeon la tendresse. II composait alors dans sa t^te de petdts r^cits dont les personnages ^talent des animaux, des fables oh parlaient le oorbeau, 6 le renard, la cigale et la fourmi. Vous avez reconnu ce grand podte dont vous ap- prenez les fables par coeur, La Fontaine. C'est un des ^riyains qui ont immortalise notre langue : on lit ses fables partouty on les traduit partout, on les apprend lopartout Elles sont pleines d'esprit, de grftce, de naturel, et en mSme temps elles montrent aux hommes les d^fauts dont ils devraient se corriger. 6. Bbuno, Le Tour de la France. § 137. PREMIERES ETUDES 15 On me conduisait tons les matins avec Lucile chez les soeurs Couppart, deux vieilles bossues habill^s de noir qui montraient k lire aux enfants. Lucile lisait fort mal. On la grondait; je griffais les soeurs: grandes plaintes port^es k ma m^re. Je commenqais 20 k passer pour un vaurien, un r^volt^, un paresseux, un kae enfin. Ces id^es entraient dans la t^te de mes parents: mon p^re disait que tous les chevaliers de Chateaubriand avaient ^t^ des fouetteurs de li^vres, FOR ORAL PRACTICE 109 Very slow and careful pronunciation. ra'nair la 'ryiZy dU h 'lu la ferosVte, ddt h 'J)e lajideli'te, dd, Id pV'^o la tll'^dres. il kd'po'*ze{t) a'loir da sa 'teit dd p(d)ti re'si do leperso'nai^ ete dez anVmo, de 'faibl u par'le Id kor^Oj h rd^nair, la si' gal e la fur'mi, vuz ave rdko'ny sd 'grdt po'eit do vuz aprd'ne le ^faibld 6 par ^koeir, lafo^'ten, seH de dez ekri've ki ot imortaWze notrd 'laig : o 'U se 'faibld par'tu, o le tra'dyi parHu, o lez a'prct parHu, el so 'phin des'pri, dd 'grais, dd naty- 'rel e ci 'meim 'tdt el moitr o'z om le de'fo dot il dd^vre sd kori'^e. 10 '36 hry^no, Id 'tuir dd la ^frSis. § 137. prd'mjeirz e'tyd 9 md ko'dyi'zz tu le m£te avek ly'sil \e le ^soeirku^pair, 'd^ 'vjeij bo'sy ahi'je dd 'nwair ki mo^'tre a 'U\r oz cL^^dt, ly'sil li'ze fo\r 'maL la gro^'de; 39 gri^e le 'sceir.'is 'grUid 'pleit por'te a ma ^meir. 39 komct'^se apa^^se pur ce vo^Wje, ce revol'te, ce pare's^, defn am S»'/e. sez i'de a^^tre ddt la 'text dd me pa' ret : mo 'pe\r di'ze kd 'tu le IdvaVje dd la'tohri'a avet e'te de fwe'toair dd 'Ijeivr, 110 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Very slow and careful pronunciation. des iyrognes et des querelleurs. Ma m^re soupirait et grognait en voyant le d^sordre de ma jaquette. Tout enfant que j'^tais, le propos de mon p^re me r^yoltait : quand ma m^re couronnait ses remontrances par I'^loge 6 de mon f r^re, qu'elle appelait un Caton, un h^ros, je me sentais dispose k faire tout le mal qu'on semblait at- tendre de moL Mon mattre d'^eriture, M. Despr^, k perruque de matelot, n'^tait pas plus content de moi que mes 10 parents ; il me faisait copier ^ternellement, d'apr^s un exemple de sa fa^n, ces deux vers que j'ai pris en horreur : C'est k vous, mon esprit, k qui je veux parler; Vous avez des d^fauts que je ne puis celer. 16 II accompagnait ses r^primandes de coups de poing qu'il me donnait dans le cou, en m'appelant tite d'achocre; voulait-il dire achore? Je ne sais pas ce que c'est qu'une tdte d'achocre, mais je la tiens pour effroyable. 20 Fban90I8-Renk de Chateaubriand, M^moires d'outre-tombe. FOR ORAL PRACTICE 111 Very slow and careful pronunciation. dez i^vroji e de kdre^loeir. ma ^meir supfre e giv^jie d, vwa'jdi Id de'zordrd dd ma ^a^ket, 'tut U^'fU kd se'^e, Id pro'po dd mo 'pe\r ma revoVte : kd, ma 'meir kuro'm se Tdmo'^trQis par le'loi^ da mo 'freir, kd a'ple ce ka'to, ce e'Vo, 3a md sW't^ dispo^'ze a yei7' Hu Id 'mal kd5 $(l''hU{t) aHUxdrd dd 'mwa, mo 'meitrd dekri'tyWy mdsj^ dzs'pre, a p^'ryk dd ma'tlo, nete 'pa ^ply ko^'tct dd 'mwa kd me pa' r a; il m.d f^'z^ ko'pje etzrmVmU, da'pre(z) den eg'zdtipld dd safa'so, se 'd(^ 'veir kd 36 'pri din o'tcext : 10 set a 'vu, mon zs'pri, a ki 59 'v^ par'le; vuz a've de de'fo kd 3a n(a) 'p^i sd'le, il ako'pa'jie se repri'mSid dd kit d(d) 'pwe kil md do'ne dS Id 'ku, a ma'plQ 'teit da'kokr; vulet il 'diir a'koirf 3a n(a) 'se pa s(a) kd 'se kyn 'text da'kokr, me 3a la 'tje 15 pur efrwa'jaibl, frW'swa rd'ne dd ja^tobri'dl me'mwair duitrd 'toib 112 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Pronunciation in ordinary reading. § 138. RAISON ET POUMONS Moli^re ^tait fort ami du c^l^bre avocat Fourcroi, homme tr^s redoutable par la capacity et la grande ^tendue de sea poumons. lis eurent une dispute k Stable en presence de M. Despr^ux. Moli^re se tourna du cdt^ du satirique, et lui dit: cQu'est-ce que la raison contre une gueule oomme cela?» § 139. UNE REPARTIE Un sot raillait \in bomme d'esprit sur la longueur 10 de ses oreilles : c U est vrai, lui r^pondit la personne raill^, j'ai des oreilles trop grandes pour un bomme ; mais convenez aussi que vous en avez de trop petites pour un ftne.» § 140. LE VIOLON 16 11 ^tait une fois un monsieur qui jouait du violon. Ce monsieur avait un fils qui se nommait Justin, et le petit garqon ^tait bien beureux quand son papa lui jouait des airs de sa connaissance, tels que Mal- brouck, Le roi Dagobert, Au clair de la lune. 20 Alors Justin cbantait, et le p^re accompagnait doucement la petite voix sur le violon. C'^tait tr^s joli, et ne semblait pas du tout difficile. FOR ORAL PRACTICE 113 Pronunciation in ordinary reading. § 138. re''zd e pu'md moVjzir ete 'foir a W dy se'leibr avo'ka fuir^krwa, 'om tre r(d)du'taibld par la Jcapasi'te e la 'graid etW^dy d se pu'mo. ilz y'r(t) yn dis'pyt a ^taibl a pre'zotis dd mdsj^ despre'o. moVjeir s(d) tur'na dy ko^'te dy sati'rik e5 lili 'di: «'keskd la re''zd koitr yn 'goel kom 'sla ('sa)?» § 139. yn rdparHl ce 'so ra'j^ ce'rz om des'pri syr la lo'^goeir d sez o'reij : «il e 'vre, l^i repo^'di la person ra'[je, 36 dez o'reij 'tro 'graid pur de!n om; me ko'vne o''si k{d) vuz an ave dlO 'tro pHit pur ce'n am, » § 140. h vjo'lo il etet yn 'fwa oe md'sj^ ki '3108 dy vjo'lo. sd mo'sj^ avet ce 'Jis ki s nome ^ys'te, e I pti gar' so ete 'bje ^''r^kdt so pa' pa h[i '^ive de'z eir d sa kone'sdtis, tel 15 kd mal'bruk, h rwa dago'beir, khir dd la 'lyn. a'loir ^ys'te ja^'te, e I' peir ako'pa'jie dus'ma la ptit 'vwa syr 1(d) vjo'lo, sete 'tre ^o'liy e n sWbh 'pa dy tu difi'sil. 114 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Pronunciation in ordinary reading. Le papa n'avait qa'4 placer le haut da yiolon entre son menton et sa poitrine ; prendre le manche de I'instrument dans sa main gauche, dont les doigts touchaient les cordes Tune apr^s Pautre; puis de 6 la main droite prendre I'archet, et le promener sur le milieu des cordes, comme ceci: en haut, en has, en haut, en has. £t le violon chantait tout ce qu'on voulait! Cela paraissait si simple, si facile k ex6- cuter, que I'enfant youlut jouer k son tour. 10 c Donne, mon p^re, lui dit-il, donne ton violon que je joue : Au clair de la lune, mon ami Pierroti Le p^re donna son violon, et le petit gan^n le posa tr^s adroitement comme il avait yu son p^re: le haut entre le menton et la poitrine, le manche 15 dans la main gauche, Parchet dans la main droite; une ! deux ! puis il joua ! . . . Mais quelle affreuse chose on entendit! Au lieu du joli chant qu'on lui demandait, le violon ne fit que grincer, ronfler, crier, grogner, hurler! . . . 20 Cela d^chirait si horriblement les oreilles que le petit garqon, tout effray^, courut rendre le violon k son p^re en lui disant : cMais, papa, que faut-il done faire pour qu'un violon chante de beaux airs? FOR ORAL PRACTICE 115 Pronunciation in ordinary reading. b pa'pa n ave ka pla'se h 'o dy vjo'lo Si^ra so mWHo e sa pwaHrin; 'prdtidra I 'mSiJ d Wstry^mdL dS sa me 'goij, do le 'dwa tu^le le 'kord 'lyn apre 'loitr; pyi d la me 'drwat prU\drd Zar'Je, e I prom^ne syr 1(d) mVlj^ de 'kordf kom sa^si: ct'o, S 'ba, S'o, S 'ba, e I vjolb fa'7e5 Hu 8 ko vu*h ! sla parese 'si 'seiply si fa'sil a egzeky'tCy kd IdL'^fd, vuly '^we a so 'tuir. ^'don, mo 'peiVy lyi dVt il, 'don to vjo'lo k 3a '^u: o khir dd la 'lyn, mon ami pje^'ro, » Id 'peir do'na so vjo'lo, e I pti gar' so I po''za 'tre(z) a- 10 drwat'mU kom il ave 'vy so 'peir: Id 'o Sitrd I mU^'to e la pwa'trin, h 'm^ij ddt la me '^01 J, lar'je dU la me 'drwat; 'yn ! 'd6 1 pvi il '^wa / . . . me kel a'fr^iz 'joiz on d,HdL''di! Ij^ dy '^oli 'jS ko lyi dmdi''dey Id vjo'lo n 'fi kd gre^'se, ro^'fle, kri'e, gro' j^e, 15 yr'le! . . . sdla de^i're si oribh'mU lez o'reij ka I pti gar'sOf tu(t) efre'je, kury 'rdLidrd I vjo'lo a so 'pzir (t lyi di'zS : « 'me, pa'pa, kd 'fot il do ^eir pur kZ vjolo 'Idlit dd 'bo'z eirf 20 116 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Pronunciation in ordinary reading. — C'est bien simple, mon enfant, r^pondit le ptee, il faut apprendre k le faire chanter. » Morality Apprendre k rtfcrter son esprit par les plaisirs 6d^icat8 qui Pennoblissent, pour ne point succomber k la tentation des plaisirs grossiers qui I'abrutissent et le d^gradent § 141. ROLAND Les chansons de geste racontent que Charlemagne lOrentrait en France, apr^s avoir d^fait les Sarrasins d'Espagne, tandis que son arri^re-garde, ob, se trouvait Roland, traversait encore le d^fil^ de Roncevaux, dans les Pyr^n^s. Les Sarrasins la surprirent et I'exter- min^rent malgr^ les prodiges d'h^rolsme de Roland, iSd^Olivier, de Tarchevfique Turpin et des autres pairs, leurs compagnons. D^s le d^butde I'attaque, Olivier avait suppli^ Roland de sonner de I'oliphant afin que Charlemagne fiit ainsi pr^venu du danger qu'ils couraient. Mais, emport^ jsopar rhabitude de vaincre, Roland n'en voulut mal- heureusement rien faire, et Olivier lui disait fort justement un peu plus tard : Folie n'est pas courage ! Quand tout fut k peu pr^s perdu, Roland se d^cida k FOR ORAL PRACTICE 117 Pronunciation in ordinary reading. — se 'bje 'seipl, mon a^^fa, repo^di I 'peir, il fo{t) a'prai- dr a I few \a'He. » moraliHe a'praidr a rekre'e son es'pri par le ple^^ziir deli'ka hi I dtmo'blis, pur n(d) 'pwe syko^'be a la tdi'ta^'sjo de ple^'ziir 5 gro^'sje ki labry'tis e I de'grad, § 141. ro'm le ja'so d^^est ra'koit kd larh'map. ra^tre dt 'frais^ aprcz avwair de'fe le sara'ze des^paji, ta'di k son arjeir- 'gardy u s trwve ro'lU, traver'se W'koir I dejVle d ro\8'vo, IG dM le pire'ne. le sara^ze la syr'priir e lekstermi'mir malgre lepro'dii'^ dero'ismd d ro^la, doli'vje, dd larldveik iyr'pl e dez o\ trd ^peir, loer k^'pa'jio. ^de I de'by d Wtak, oli'vje ave syjjli^e ro'lct d sone d loli- y% afe k jarh'maji fy(t) e'si pre'vny dy dW^^^e kil Zcw-iS Ve. 'me, Wpor'te par labityd dd 'veikr, ro'la nU vu'ly maloe>'r(^'z'ma 'rjt 'f^\r^ e oWvje ly^i di'ze fo\r ^ystd^ma da p^ ply ^tair: fo'li m pa ku^rai'^ ! kU 'tu fy(t) a p(j> prz pzr'dy^ ro'lct s desi'da a so'ne, e il i mi 'tS dvi/goeir, kd I 'sU 118 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Pronunciation in ordinary reading. sonner, et il 7 mit tant de vigueur, que le sang lui sortait des oreilles, et que les veines de ses tempes en ^lat^rent Puis, d^sesp^r^, 11 voulut briser son ^p^ Durandal ; mais le roc se fend it sans ^br^cher I'^p^e. 6 Cependant Charlemagne avait compris les appels lugubres. II s'^ria tristement : Ce cor a longue ha- leine ! Roland est en p^ril ! et revint en h&te au secours de ses' preux. Mais il arriva trop tard. L'oliphant s'^tait tu, et les pairs ^taient morts. 10 § 142. L£ SINGE Un yieux singe malin ^tant mort, son ombre desoen- dit dans la sombre demeure de Pluton, oh. elle demanda k retourner parmi les vivants. Pluton voulait la renvoyer dans le corps d'un ftne pesant et stupide, 15 pour lui dter sa souplesse, sa vivacity et sa malice; mais elle fit tant de tours plaisants et badins, que Finflexible roi des enfers ne put s'empdcher de rire, et lui laissa le choix d'une condition. Elle demanda 4 entrer dans le corps d'un perroquet « Au moins, 20 disait-elle, je conserverai par \k quelque ressemblance avec les bommes, que j'ai si longtemps imit^s. !^tant singe, je faisais des gestes comme eux ; et, ^tant per- roquet, je parlerai avec eux dans les plus agr^bles conversations. FOR ORAL PRACTICE 119 Pronunciation in ordinary reading. Itii sor^te dez o'reijy e k le 'vein d se 'td,\p Un ekWteir, 'pyi dezespe're, il vuly bri'^ze son e'pe dyrW'dal; me I 'rok sd fWdi sdtz ehre'le le'pe, Sdpdt'^dct jarWmaji ave ko^'pri lez a'pzl ly'gy'^hr. il s ekrVa tristd'mct : sd 'kd\r a 'lo\g a'lzin I ro'ld, et dt pe'ril ! 5 e r'vz d. 'a\t s'kuir d se ^pr^, me il ari'va tro 'ta\r, loWfdt s ete 'tyy e le ^peir ete 'mo\r, § 142. h '«ei3 ok vj^ 'sei3 ma^le et(l 'mow, so'n oibrd desWdi ddl la 'soibrd d^moeir d{d) ply' to, u eZ dmWda a rtur'ne parmi 10 le vi'vU. ply'to vule la rWvwa'je dS, I 'ko\r dok'n a\n pa'zd, e sty'pidy pur lyi o'^te sa supples, sa vivasi'te e sa ma^lis; me elji 'tcL d(d) 'tuirple'^za e ha'de, kd le'fleksiihld 'rwa dez (V'fe\r n py sd^'pe'^^e d 'riir, e lyi le'^sa I 'Iwa d yn ko'di'sjo. el dmU^'da a a^'tre da I 'ko\r dokpero'ke, 15 « o 'mwe, dize't el, 3a ko'ser'vre par 'la kelkd rsa''hlU\s avek le'z om, kd 36 si lo^'tU imi'te. etct 'seX'z^, 39 fdze de '365^ ko'm 6; e eWi pero'ke, 39 parWre ave'k d ddt le plyz agre- 'aibld kd' versa' 'sJQ, » 120 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Pronunciation in ordinary reading. A peine Tdjne du singe f ut introduite dans ce nouveau metier, qu'une vieille femme causeuse Pacheta. II fit ses d^lices ; elle le mit dans one belle cage. II faisait bonne ch^re, et discourait toute la joum^e avec la fiyieille radoteuse, qui ne parlait pas plus sens^ment que lui. II joignait k son nouTeau talent d'^tourdir tout le monde je ne sais quoi de son ancienne pro? fession; il remuait sa tdte ridiculement ; il faisait eraquer son bee ; il agitait ses ailes de cent famous, et 10 faisait de ses pattes plusieurs tours qui sentaient encore les grimaces de Fagotin. La vieille prenait k toute heure ses lunettes pour Padmirer. Elle ^tait bien f&ch^e d'dtre un peu sourde et de perdre quelque- fois des paroles de son perroquet, k qui elle trouvait 16 plus d'esprit qu'^ personne. Ce perroquet gftt^ devint bavard, importun et fou. II se tourmenta si fort dans sa cage, et but tant de vin avec la vieille, qu'il en mourut. Le voili revenu devant Pluton, qui voulut cette fois 20 le faire passer dans le corps d'un poisson pour le rendre muet ; mais il fit encore une farce devant le roi des ombres : et les princes ne r^sistent gu^re aux demandes des mauvais plaisants qui les flattent. Pluton accorda done k celui-ci qu'il irait dans le FOR ORAL PRACtic:^: 121 Pronunciation in ordinary reading. a ^pem 'la\m dy 'S83 fy e'tro'dyit da s mtvo me'tje^ kyn vjeij 'fam Wz^iz la^ta, ilji se de^lis; d h mi dUz yn 'bel ^kai^. ilfdze hon '\^\r, e disku're 'tut la ^ur'ne avek la vjeij rado't^iz, ki n parh 'pa ply sWse'mU k 'h[i, it 3w;a'ji8 a so 'nuvo ta'la d etur'dhr tu I 'moid 5a n se5 'kwa d son a^'sjen profe'sjo; il rdmiie sa 'teit ridikyVmd,; il fdzz kra'ke so 'bek; il a-T^i'te se'z eil d(d) sU fa' so, e fdze dse 'pat plyzjoeir 'tuir ki sa'te Wkoirle gri'mas d(d) fago'te. la 'vjeij pr dm a 'tu t oeir se ly'net pur I admv're, d ete 'bjefai'je deitr odptj) 'surd e d 'perdrd kelkd'fwa de 10 pa'rol d so p^ro'ke, a ki el tru^'ve 'ply des'prikaper'son. sd pero'ke ga^'te ddve ba'vair, e'por'toe e 'fu. il sd tur- ma''ta si 'fair da sa 'kai^, e by 'ta d 've avek la ^vjeij, kil dt mu'ry. Id vwala r(d)v'ny dvdl ply'to, ki vu'ly set 'fwa I few 15 pa^'se d^ I koir doe pwa'so pur 1(d) 'raidrd 'my^e; me il ji ^''koir yn 'fars ddvdi I 'rwa de'z oibr : e le 'preis na rezist 'geir o d'maid de 'move ple^'zU ki le 'flat, ply'to akorda 'doik a sdlyi'si kil i're dU I 'koir doe'n om. 122 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Pronunciation in ordinary reading. corps d'lin homme. Mais comme le dieu eut honte de Penvoyer dans le corps d'un homme sage et vertueux, 11 le destiua au corps d'un harangueur ennuyeux et importun, qui mentait, qui se vantait sans cesse, qui 6 faisait des gestes ridicules, qui se moquait de tout le monde, qui interrompait toutes les conversations les plus solideSy pour dire des riens, ou les sottises les plus grossi^res. Mercure, qui le reconnut dans oe nouvel ^tat, lui dit en riant : c Ho ! ho ! je te reconnais ; 10 tu n'es qu'un compost du singe et du perroquet que j'ai Yus autrefois. Qui t'dterait tes gestes et tes paroles apprises par oceur, sans jugement, ne laisserait rien de toL D'un joli singe et d'un bon perroquet, on n'en fait qu'un sot homme. » 15 O combien d'hommes dans le monde, avec des gestes faqonn^s, un petit caquet et un air capable, n'ont ni sens ni conduite 1 FiKSLON. FOR ORAL PRACTICE 123 Pronunciation in ordinary reading. me korti h 'dj^ y 'o\t dd IWvwa'je dd, I ^koir dcen om 'sai^ e ver'tii^y il lid) desti/na o 'koir doe, arW- 'goeir (t'ntii'^j^ e I'por'toe,, ki mdt'^te, ki s vdt'^te sU ^seSf ki fdze de ^^est ridi'kyl, ki s mo'kz d 'tu I ^md:d, ki e'tero'^pe ^tut le ko'versa'^sjo le ^ply so'Ud, pur diir de ^rje, u leS so'tiiz le ply gro^sjeir. mzr'kyw, ki h rko^ny dU s nu^vel e'ta,liii'di dl 'rja: <\h)o! \h)o! 3a td rko'm; ty ne koe, kopo'^ze dy 'sei^ e dy pero'ke kdT^e 'vy oitrd'fwa* ki to^'tre te '^est e te pa'rol apriiz par 'kceir, set ^y'^'m^y nd hisre 'rJE d ^twa. doe ^^oli ^sei^ e doe 'bo pero'ke, nS 10 '/e /cce 'so't om,y^ o 'koibje ^dom dU I 'moid, avek de ^^est faso'ne, ce pti ka'ke e oefn eir ka'paibl, no 'ni 'sctis 'ni ko'^diiit/ fea'lo. 124 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS "^ Rapid conversatioDal pronunciation. § 143. £N CLASSB Le professeur: Bonjour, mes eufants. Lea dl^ea : Bon jour, monsieur. Le professeur : Y a-t-il dee absents ce matin ? 5 Jacques (Jacqueline): 11 ne manque personne, mon- sieur. Le professeur : Qu'aviez-vouz k faire pour aujourd'hui? Jean (Jeanne): Nous avions k r^umer en prose la fable que nous avons lue avant-hier. 10 Le professeur : Alors vous savez ce que nous avons ^tudi^ en classe la demi^re fois ? Pourtant il me semble que c'est justement vous qui avez casqu^ r^cole. Jean (Jeanne) : Mais non, monsieur, vous vous trom- 15 pez ! Ce n'est pas moi qui ai ^t^ absent (absente), je vous assure. Le professeur : Les professeurs ne se trompent jamais. Asseyez-vous ! Vous aurez une heure de retenue. Jean (Jeanne) : Mais, monsieur . . . 20 Le professeur : Taisez-vous ! — Lejeune, commencez k lire ce que vous avez ^crit. Vous autres, vous allez discuter ses fautes. — Parlez plus haut et pas si vite. — Reprenez au commencement. Vous devez articuler plus distinctement Vous n'avez FOR ORAL PRACTICE 125 Rapid conversational pronunciation. § 143. ^ 'Mais Id profe'soeir : bo' 'wr^ mez W |/*S. leze^ziv: bo'^^uir, md'sj^. Id profe'soeir: j ati dez ap^sa s ma'tef '^aik (^a^'klin) : i n mctik per'soUj md'sj^, 5 Id profe'soeir: kavje vu a 'feir pur o'^ur'diiif '^a Csain) : nuz avjo a rezy'me a 'proiz la 'faih(ld) kd nuz avo 'ly avdt'jeir. Id profe'soeir: aloir vu sa've s kd nuz avo ety'dje dt 'klais la dernjeir 'fwa ? pur'ta i m 'sdtih(ld) k(d) se 10 ^ystdmdt 'vu kj ave kas'ke I e'kol. '3^ ('3am) : 'me 'no, md'sj^, vu vu tro^'pe! s ne pa 'mwa ki e ete ap'sU {ap'sUit), 3 vuz a'syir. Id profe'soeir : le p'ivfe'soeir no s 'troip ^a'me, aseje 'vu ! vuz ore y'n oeir do r'tny. 15 '3S (^^ain) : 'me, md'sj^ . . . Id profe'soeir : te'ze 'vu ! — • Id'yx.n^ komU'se a 'liir s kd vuz ave e'krL vu'z oit(rd)j vuz ale disky'te se 'foit parle ply '0 e 'pa si 'vit. — rdprd'ne komWs'm^, vu dve artiky'le ply disWktd'mU, vu nave pa Z20 126 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Rapid conversational pronunciation. pas le moindre sens de la declamation. — Pourquoi ne oontinuez-vous pas? Vous attendez qu'on Yons souffle, n'est-ce pas ? Francois Lejeune : Mais, monsieur . . . 6Le professeur: Pas de r^plique. C'est trop fort. Tout le monde semble dtre paresseux aujourd'hui. Prenez garde k yous si vous continuez ainsi ! Dans deux semaiues yous deYrez yous presenter k I'examen. II y a au moins six d'entre yous qui 10 'pre sd l^^'gai^ : « 'ei I bo^'^uir, ms'sj^ dy kor'bo ! kd vuz et ^o'li! kd vu md 'sUible 'bo! 20 s3 mU'^tiir, si votrd ra'mai'^ 138 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Very slow and careful pronunciation. / Se rapporte k votre plumage, Yous dtes le ph^nix des hdtes de ces bois. » A ces mots, le corbeau ne se sent pas de joie ; Et, pour montrer sa belle voix, 5 II ouvre un large bee, laisse tomber sa proie. Le renard s'en saisit, et dit : c Mon bon monsieur, Apprenez que tout flatteur Yit aux d^pens de oelui qui I'^coute ; Cette leqon vaut bien un fromage, sans doute. » 10 Le corbeau, honteux et confus, Jura, mais un peu tard, qu'on ne Vy prendrait plus. Jban dk La Fontaink. § 148. APRES LA BATAILLE Mon p^re, ce h^ros au sourire si doux, Suivi d'un seul housard, qu'il aimait entre tons 15 Pour sa grande bravoure et pour sa haute taille, Parcourait k cheval, le soir d'une bataille, Le champ convert de morts sur qui tombait la nuit II lui sembla dans I'ombre entendre un faible bruit. C'^tait un Espagnol de Tarm^ en d^route, 20 Qui se trainait, sanglant, sur le bord de la route, R&lant, bris^, livide, et mort plus qu'^ moiti^, Et qui disait : « A boire, k boire par piti^ ! » FOR ORAL PRACTICE 139 Very slow and careful pronunciation. 89 rapport a votrd ply'mai'^, vuz et Id fe'^niks de'z o\t dd se 'bwa,y> a se 'mo, Id kor'ho na sd sUpa dd '^wa; e, pur mo^'tre sa hel 'vwa, il uivr oe 'lar^d 'bek, his td'^be sa 'prwa, 5 Id rd'nair sdt se'^zi, e 'di: « mo 'ho md'sj^y aprd'ne kd tufla'toeir vit de'pU dd sd'lyi ki le'kut; set Id'so vo 'bje(n) oe fro'mai^, sSt 'dut » Id kor'bOy d''t^ e ko^'fy, 10 ^y'ra, mez ce p^ 'tair, kd nd li prWdre 'ply. '3S d(d) lafo^'ten. § 148. Bpre la ba'taij mo 'peiVy Sd e^'ro su'riir si 'du, svi^'vi doe, 'sod u'zair. Ml e'met Uitrd 'tui(s) pur sa 'grdlid bra'vuir e pur sa 'o\t{d) 'taij, 15 parkuret a J(a)''yaZ, Id 'swair dyn ba'taij. Id 'IdL kuveir dd 'moir syr ki to^'be la 'mii. il li[i sWbla ddL 'loibr WtdLidr ce 'fiibld 'bry^i, setet den espa'pol dd lar'me a de'rut, ki s(d) tre''m, sWgln, syr Id 'boir d(d) la 'rut, 20 ra^'lS, brv'ze, li'vid, e 'moir ply ka mwa'tje, e ki di'ze: «a 'bwair, a 'bwair par pi'tje I » 140 PHONETIC TRANSCRIPTIONS Very alow and careful pronunciation. Mon p^re, ^mu, tendit k son housard fiddle Une gourde de rhum qui pendait k sa selle, £t dit : « Tiens, donne k boire k ce pauvre bless^. » Tout k coup, au moment oh. le housard baiss^ 6 Se penchait yers lui, I'homme, une esp^oe de Maure, Saisit un pistolet qu'il ^treignait encore, £t vise au front mon p^re, en criant : t Caramba ! » Le coup passa si pr^s que le chapeau tomba, £t que le cheval fit un ^cart en arri^re. 10 € Donne-lui tout de mdme k boire, » dit mon p^re. Victor Hugo. ! U9. LA MARSEILLAISE Ailons, enfants de la Patrie, Le jour de gloire est arriv^ ; Contre nous de la tyrannie 15 L'^tendard sanglant est lev^. £ntendez-vous dans ces campagnes Mugir ces f^roces soldats ? lis viennent j usque dans vos bras ^gorger vos fils, vos compagnes ! 20 Aux armes, citoyens I f ormez vos bataillons 1 Marchons, marchons ! Qu'un sang impur abreuve nos sillons ! EOUGKT DB L'ISLS. FOR ORAL PRACTICE 141 Very slow and careful pronunciation. mo 'peir, e^my, tWdit a so u^zairji'del yn 'giird{d) da Worn hi pWdzt a sa 'szl, e 'di: « 'tjl, don a 'bwair a sd 'powrd hWse, > tut a 'hu, mo'mdt u h u'zair be'^se Sd pS'^Je ver 7^i, 'Zom, yn es^pes dd 'moir, 6 se'^zit 06 pisto'lz Ml etre^jiet dl'^koir, e viiz yro mo ^peir^ U kri'd. : « Tca'ramha ! » Id 'kupa'sa si 'prz kd h la^po to^'ba, e kd Id lidYvalJit oen e'kair an a^rjeir, « do7i lyi tut^meim a 'hwair^ » di mo 'peir, lo vik'to(\)r y'go, 149. la mai'se^jeiz a'loz, U^'fU did) la pa'tri[d'] y^ Id 3i6ir da 'glwa\r et arrive; koitrd 'nu d(d) la tira'nildy- letn^'dair s^^'gUt e l{dyve, 15 U'tU'de ^vu da se Zf3''paji[a] * my^'^iir se fe'ros{d) sol' da? il ''y/2n[a]* '^yskd da vo 'bra egor-^e vo 'fiSy vo ko''paji\_d']'^ ! o'z arm{d), sitwa'jl! for' me vo bata'jo! 20 mar'jS, mar' Id 1 koe S(X\k ^''pyir a'broeiv{d) no si' jo! n^'se d 'UL 1 [dl is pronounced only in singing. 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