French pronunciation
The letter combination uil is pronounced more or less like the English word "wheel." The IPA spelling is [wil], and the Lawless phonetic spelling is [weel].
 |
Par exemple… |
| huile | oil |
| tuile | tile |
Exceptions
The combination uille is pronounced [wij] – something like the English word "wee." The double l here is always pronounced like a y rather than an l: [weey]
|
Par exemple… |
| une cuillère | spoon |
| juillet | July |
Exceptions
- After g, the u is silent – it just makes the g hard: –guille is pronounced [geey]
| un guillemet | quotation mark |
| Guillaume | William |
- After q, the u is silent – it’s only there to support the q: –quille is pronounced [keey]
| une coquille | shell |
| tranquille | calm |
Related lessons
- Letters: U | I | L
- French vowels
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