Le Premier Livre
Syllables
(^) circumflex accent (accent circonflexe).
The apostrophe ('), l'apostrophe, indicates that a
vowel has been omitted: l'enfant.
The cedilla (¸), la cédille, placed under a c, indicates
that the sound of c is soft: français.
The diaeresis (¨), le tréma, placed over the second of
two consecutive vowels, indicates that the first vowel is to be pronounced separately: naïveté.
The hyphen (-), le trait d'union, is used to connect
words: suis-je?
S
1. A French syllable generally begins with a consonant; the first
syllable, however, may begin with a vowel: fé-li-ci-ter, a-me-ner.
2. When there are two consonants, the first belongs to the
preceding syllable, the second to the following syllable: en-fant, bon-té.
3. If the second consonant is l or r, the two consonants belong
to the same syllable: ou-bli-er, ou-vrit. The combinations ch, ph, th, gn always belong to the same syllable.
S
All French syllables, except those ending with a mute e, are pronounced with equal stress, but the voice rests on the last syllable giving it a slight emphasis. If the last syllable contains a mute e, the emphasis falls on the preceding syllable: im|par|fait, a|bon|dant, a|bon|dan|te, tu de|man|des, ils de|man|dent.