CONTENTS
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Dedication
This book is dedicated to my adorable Stein grandchildren: Francesca, Theresa, and Julian. Special thanks to my incredibly supportive editor, Christopher Stolle.
Introduction
In todays fast-growing, ever-expanding multicultural world, the acquisition of a foreign language is a must for travel, business, and other pursuits. Learning French will allow you to enter a world of endless opportunities, intriguing experiences, and exciting challenges. It will provide you with the key that opens the door to a different lifestyle, a distinctive culture, and a unique, romantic outlook on life.
Whats Inside
Youll learn pronunciation and grammar painlessly and effortlessly without sacrificing speed and accuracy.
Whats Inside
Youll learn pronunciation and grammar painlessly and effortlessly without sacrificing speed and accuracy.
Whether youre a student, a traveler, or a businessperson, this book will teach you the basics while giving you the vocabulary and the phrases youll find most useful in almost every conceivable daily situation. Youll be introduced to a wide variety of topics: food, clothing, sports, health, social media, and much more. This book isnt merely a phrase book, a grammar text, or a travel companionits a combination. That makes it not only unique but also an extremely useful tool for people who want a working command of French. It will allow you to understand and to be understood without embarrassment or frustration and with ease and enjoyment. Yes, learning French can be fun! This book was written with you in mind.
Thats why its so user-friendly. By the time youve read through it, youll be a pro at ordering a meal to suit your diet, watching a French film without completely depending on the subtitles, meeting new friends, dealing with security personnel before they perform a full-body search at the airport, getting the biggest bang for your buck, and getting help in an emergency. Youll be amazed and surprised at how rapidly youll learn what you need to know.
Publisher Mike Sanders Editor Christopher Stolle Designer William Thomas Compositor Ayanna Lacey Technical Editor Madeleine Vasaly Proofreader Madeleine Vasaly Indexer Beverlee Day DIGITAL PRODUCTION Digital Programme Manager Miguel Cunha Senior Manager Lakshmi Rao Producer Suruchi Kakkar Executive Neha Khanna Production Manager Nain Singh Rawat Production Coordinator Manish Bhatt First American Edition, 2022
Published in the United States by DK Publishing
6081 E. 82nd Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46250 Copyright 2022 by Gail Stein All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under the copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the copyright owner.
Published in the United States by Dorling Kindersley Limited. ISBN: 9780744051438 This digital edition is published in 2021 eISBN: 9780744059359 Library of Congress Catalog Number: 2021944232 Note: This publication contains the opinions and ideas of its authors. It is intended to provide helpful and informative material on the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the author(s) and publisher are not engaged in rendering professional services in the book. If the reader requires personal assistance or advice, a competent professional should be consulted. The authors and publisher specifically disclaim any responsibility for any liability, loss, or risk, personal or otherwise, which is incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents of this book.
Trademarks: All terms mentioned in this book that are known to be or are suspected of being trademarks or service marks have been appropriately capitalized. Alpha Books, DK, and Penguin Random House LLC cannot attest to the accuracy of this information. Use of a term in this book should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark. DK books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk for sales promotions, premiums, fund-raising, or educational use. For details, contact
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Stress
In French, each syllable of a word has almost equal stress.
Stress
In French, each syllable of a word has almost equal stress.
When speaking French, pronounce each syllable with equal emphasis, except for the last syllable of a group of words, which should get a slightly stronger emphasis.
Diacritical Marks
Mark | Significance | Examples |
(acute accent) | Used only on an e () to produce the sound ay as in day | bb bay-bay |
` (grave accent) | Used on an a (): no sound change; e (): produces the sound eh , as in met ; or u (): no sound change | ah trs treh o oo |
(circumflex accent) | Used on all vowels: , , , , ; longer vowel sounds for and ; slightly longer vowel sound for ; almost imperceptible for and | pte paht fte feht le eel htel o-tehl sr sewr |
(cedilla) | Used only on a c () before a , o , or u to produce a soft c (the sound of s ) | a sah garon gahr-sohN reu ruh-sew |
(dieresis) | Used on the second vowel in a series; each vowel pronounced separately | Nol noh-ehl Hati ah-ee-tee |
To learn how to pronounce (like that in garon ). The letter often replaces an s from older French: tranger (stranger). Adding a mental s after plus a vowel can help determine meaning: le (isle).
Vowels
Vowel | Pronunciation | Examples |
a | ah | la lah ah chteau shah-toh |
final er or final ert ez | ay | caf kah-fay aider ay-day chez shay |
Vowel | Pronunciation | Examples |
e (in one-syllable words or in the middle of a word followed by a single consonant) | uh | le luh premier pruh-myay |
e (plus two consonants or a final pronounced consonant) et ei ai | eh | trs treh fte feht sept seht billet bee-yeh seize sehz mai meh aider ay-day |
i | ee | il eel le eel |
o (before se ) o (last pronounced sound of a word) au eau |