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Aspirated h
Despite the name, the h aspiré is not aspirated or otherwise pronounced in French. Nevertheless, it is distinct from the h muet in that it does not allow elisions or liaisons – the h acts like a consonant.
Par exemple : Je hais les hamacs. – I hate hammocks.
- Because haïr begins with h aspiré, there is no elision with je. If it were h muet, you’d have to write
j’hais. - Likewise, les hamacs is pronounced [lay ah mak], not
[lay zah mak]as it would be if hamacs started with h muet.
The following is a fairly complete list of French words that start with h aspiré. As you can see, many of them are borrowed from other languages. Since they begin with h aspiré rather than h muet, their pronunciation remains closer to that of the original language. When in doubt, consult a dictionary, which will have some symbol, usually ‘ or *, to indicate the presence of an h aspiré.
| hâbleur | boaster | |
| la hache | axe | |
| hacher | to chop | |
| le hachisch | hashish | |
| le haddock | haddock | |
| la haie | hedge | |
| le haïku | haiku | |
| le haillon | rag | |
| la haine | hatred | |
| haïr | to hate | |
| haïssable | detestable | |
| halal | halal | |
| le hâle | suntan | |
| haler | to haul | |
| hâler | to suntan | |
| haleter | to pant | |
| le hall | hall | |
| la halle | market | |
| le hallier | thicket, brush | |
| Halloween (f) | Halloween | |
| le halo | halo | |
| la halte | break | |
| le hamac | hammock | |
| le hamburger | hamburger | |
| le hameau | hamlet | |
| le hammam | hammam | |
| la hampe | pole | |
| le hamster | hamster | |
| la hanche | hip | |
| le hand-ball | handball | |
| le handicap | handicap | |
| le hangar | shed | |
| hanter | to haunt | |
| happer | to snatch, grab | |
| harangue | harangue | |
| harasser | to exhaust | |
| harceler | to harass | |
| la harde | herd | |
| harder | to leash | |
| hardi | daring | |
| le hareng | herring | |
| la hargne | spiteful anger | |
| le haricot | bean | |
| harnacher | to harness | |
| le harpail | herd | |
| la harpe | harp | |
| le harpon | harpoon | |
| le hasard | luck, chance | |
| la hâte | haste | |
| se hâter | to hasten | |
| hausser | to harness | |
| haut | high | |
| la hauteur | height | |
| le havre | haven | |
| hercher | to haul | |
| le hère | wretch, young stag | |
| le hérisson | hedgehog | |
| la hernie | hernia | |
| le héron | heron | |
| le héros | hero | |
| la herse | hearse, harrow | |
| le hêtre | beech tree | |
| heurter | to strike | |
| le hiatus | hiatus | |
| le hibou | owl | |
| le hic | snag | |
| le hickory | hickory | |
| hideux | hideous | |
| la hiérarchie | hierarchy | |
| le hiéroglyphe | hieroglyphe | |
| hippie | hippie | |
| hisser | to hoist, heave, haul | |
| le hobby | hobby | |
| hocher | to nod, shake one’s head | |
| le hockey | hockey | |
| la Hollande | Holland | |
| le homard | lobster | |
| Hong-Kong | Hong Kong | |
| la Hongrie | Hungary | |
| la honte | shame | |
| le hoquet | hiccup | |
| hoqueter | to hiccup | |
| hors | outside | |
| la houe | hoe | |
| la houille | coal | |
| la houle | swell | |
| houleux | stormy | |
| le hooligan | hooligan | |
| la houppe | tuft | |
| houspiller | to scold | |
| la housse | cover | |
| housser | to cover (furniture) | |
| le houx | holly | |
| le hublot | porthole | |
| la huche | chest, trunk | |
| huer | to boo | |
| le huguenot | Huguenot | |
| huit | eight | |
| hululer | to hoot | |
| humer | to smell | |
| hurler | to shriek |
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