French consonant
The letter G has two pronunciations.
1) Soft (in front of E, I, or Y) – pronounced like the g in "massage," identical to the French J. Phonetic symbol: [ʒ]
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Par exemple… |
| the letter g | ||
| gérer | to manage | |
| nous mangeons | we eat | |
2) Hard (in front of A, O, U, or a consonant) – pronounced like the g in "gold." Phonetic symbol: [g]
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Par exemple… |
| la gare | train station | |
| grand | big, tall | |
| guérir | to cure |
À noter
- When G precedes a soft vowel but needs a hard pronunciation, U is added to make it hard.
- When G precedes a hard vowel but needs a soft pronunciation, as for spelling change verbs, E is added to make it soft.
See vowel lesson "Effect on consonants: hard vs soft" for more info.
Related lessons
- Letter combinations: GN | NG
- Introduction to consonants
- Introduction to vowels
- French alphabet
- Spelling change verbs
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