Why a French word looks longer than it sounds
A French word is usually shorter said than written. Learn the three habits behind that, and what to do with your mouth for the three sounds English has no equivalent for.
French lessons
Learn to read French.
We’ll start with the sounds French hides, read a few real words, and see how a sentence holds together.
Then you can try a story and see how much you understand.
13 core chapters · 3 optional references · Free, at your own pace
Starting from scratch
Start with the sounds, then read eight real words, then the sentences they sit in. The cards below let you try a greeting or look at the sounds first.
Start with the sounds →Try saying helloA first hello
Three letters,
A first hello
in French.
Start with hello, then say who you are and ask someone their name. The pronunciation and English are there to help.
Try the lesson A reading-first approachThree letters,
one sound.
A French word is shorter said than written. See the three habits behind that, and the sounds English has no equivalent for.
See how the letters workChapter 1 of 16 · Explore the French path
Start here · Chapter 1 of 16
How these lessons work
See how the French, the pronunciation and the English fit together, and meet the six respellings you could not guess. The same approach runs through every chapter.
≈ 2 min of reading · Practise at your own pace
What’s in this chapter
- This path starts from no French and ends with a short story whose pronunciation and English begin hidden.
- You will attempt a word before revealing how it sounds or what it means.
- Wherever a French word could stop you, a respelling in ordinary English letters sits beside it.
- French’s first obstacle is that the written word and the spoken word are different lengths — the next three sections fix that.
- Stop after any checkpoint. The letter and word references are for looking things up, not memorising in one sitting.
This is short preparation for reading a book, not a grammar course. It teaches how French spelling hides its own sound, where the pieces of a sentence sit, and enough recurring words for a first page. Three plain terms, because this path uses them: a naming word names a thing (fox, water), a doing word says what happens (sees, is), a describing word describes a thing (big, red).
the fox
le renard
luh ruh-nar
The large text is the spelling. luh ruh-nar is the pronunciation guide. The English is the meaning. At checkpoints, the last two stay hidden until you choose to reveal them.
The respellings you cannot guess
Most respellings here read the way English expects. These six do not, so come back to this table whenever one looks odd.
| Respelling | Say it like | French example |
|---|---|---|
| ew | no English equivalent: say “ee” with your lips rounded | lune |
| uh | u in fur | le |
| wah | wa in watch | trois |
| zh | s in measure | jour |
| r | no English equivalent: a soft scrape at the back of the throat | rouge |
| (n) | the vowel before it goes through your nose; the n itself is not said | vent |
Everything else reads as English expects: ah as in father, ay as in day, eh as in bed, ee, oh, oo, sh. The letter reference section holds the full key.
How to use a checkpoint
Look at the French first and try to say it. Then reveal.
- chat
The ch is the sh of ship, and the last letter is not said at all.
Show answer +Hide answer −
chatshah “cat”. Four letters written, two sounds spoken.
The chapters
What do you want to work on?
If you’re starting from scratch, follow the chapters in order. Otherwise, pick the bit you need. You can skip the reference pages and come back to them.
Say who someone is, and greet them
Say hello, say who you are, and ask someone their name. You also meet the two French words for “you” and the forms of être, the verb for am, is and are.
Say what you have, and where you are going
Meet avoir, the verb for have, which French also uses for hunger and age. Then the words for going somewhere, for saying something is there, and for where it is.
Read a story with help
Read a short exchange between a mouse and a fox one line at a time. The pronunciation and English stay visible while you practise following who says what.
The French alphabet and accents: find a letter and its sound
Open this when a letter will not make a sound in your head. It holds the twenty-six letters, the marks that sit above them, and the vowel and consonant pairs that make one sound.
1 chapter in this part
Word lookup: numbers, people, animals, colours, weather
Look a word up when a story hands you one you cannot place: numbers, people, animals, colours, the weather, days and times. Each noun is listed with le or la in front.
1 chapter in this part
Look up a verb shape that stops you
Open this when a verb shape blocks you. It gives the dictionary form beside the shape a story prints, the endings most French verbs take, and what follows can, must and want.
1 chapter in this part
Come back to these chapters whenever you need them.All French chapters ↗