Silent Letters

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Lettres muettes

French has a lot of silent letters, which can make pronunciation and spelling exasperating—at least until you learn the rules and patterns to these sneaky non-sounds.

Silent letters can be divided into three groups

1. E muet
2. H (aspiré and muet)
3. Final consonants

Rumor has it that most final consonants are silent, but that tricky word "most" is where the problems start. Students learn the mnemonic CaReFuL to remember the supposedly four consonants which are typically pronounced at the end of a word, while all others are typically silent. However, it’s not quite that simple.

Usually pronounced consonants

There are in fact nine French consonants that are usually pronounced at the end of a word:

Usually pronounced		Exceptional patterns		Some individual exceptions
B	un club un snob le Maghreb			le plomb
C	avec un flic un truc	nasal vowel + c    un banc, blanc		un estomac, le porc, un tabac
F	adoptif un chef un œuf			un nerf, une clef, œufs
G	le grog un iceberg	nasal vowel + g – see nasal consonants, below
K	un anorak un bifteck un look
L	avril essentiel il	vowel + -il    à l’appareil, un œil		gentil, outil
M	cadmium forum	nasal pronunciation    nom, parfum
Q	cinq le coq
R	cher le cœur faillir	suffixes -er and -ier    boulanger, premier
		-er verbs    assumer, sonner

Usually silent consonants

Six consonants are usually silent at the end of a word; however, they may be subject to liaison.

Usually silent		Exceptional patterns		Some individual exceptions
D	un canard froid grand	Proper names    Alfred, David		sud
P	beaucoup un drap un loup			un cap, un slip
S	je serais temps trois			un autobus, un fils, le tennis
T	minuit petit poulet	-ct ending    direct, strict		brut, huit, ouest
		-pt ending    concept, sept
X	deux un époux un prix			Aix, un index, six
Z	chez le riz vous copiez			le gaz

  Many of the exceptions are either proper names or words borrowed from other languages.

Nasal consonants

The letter N and the combination NG are nearly always nasal at the end of a word, meaning that they are not pronounced as consonants, but rather nasalize the vowel that precedes them.

Usually nasal			Exceptions		Notes
N	balcon chaton un		abdomen, amen
NG	long le sang		–ing suffix    footing, riesling		The g at the end of –ing isn’t pronounced [g] but it’s not a simple nasal either – learn more.

 Related lessons

• Consonants
• Liaisons
• Nasal vowels
• Vowels
   

 En español

• Letras silenciosas
   

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