Lesson 6: Spelling Your Name, Liaison & Rhythm
Épelez, s'il vous plaît ! — Spelling, Liaison & Intonation · A0 → A1 · Part 0 · Absolute Start
You will spell your name out loud in French and ask how a word is written. You will also learn the two ways French makes words stick together: liaison, where a silent letter wakes up, and elision, where a little vowel disappears. At the end you will hear the difference between les amis with liaison and the same words without it.
In this lesson
- spelling aloud
- liaison
- elision
- rhythm of sentences
Vocabulary
| French | Meaning | Say it | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comment ça s'écrit ? | How is it written / spelled? | ko-man sa say-kree ↗ کومان سا سے کری | A fixed phrase. Use it for words, names and addresses. |
| Ça s'écrit… | It is written / spelled… | sa say-kree سا سے کری | The answer. Ça s'écrit A-L-I. |
| Épelez, s'il vous plaît. | Spell it, please. (formal) | ay-puh-lay, seel voo pleh اے پُولے، سیل وو پلے | Polite and formal. With a friend you would say Épelle, s'il te plaît. |
| une lettre | a letter (of the alphabet) (f) | ün let-ruh اُن لیتْرُہ | Feminine. The final e is very light — hard to hear in fast speech. |
| un mot | a word (m) | uhn mo اَن مو | Masculine. The final t is silent — mo, not mot. |
| l'alphabet | the alphabet (m) | lal-fa-beh لالفابے | Masculine, starts with a vowel, so it is l'alphabet. The ph is an f sound. |
| les amis | the friends (with liaison) | lay-za-mee لے زَمی | The s of les is normally silent, but the vowel of amis wakes it up as a z: lay-za-mee. This is liaison. |
| vous avez | you have (with liaison) | voo-za-vay وُو زَوے | The silent s of vous becomes a z before a vowel: voo-za-vay. |
| c'est un… | it is a… (with liaison) | seh-tuhn سے تَن | The silent t of c'est wakes up and links to un: seh-tuhn. |
| un grand homme | a great man (with liaison) | uhn grahn-tom اَن گران توم | The silent d of grand turns into a t sound before homme: gran-tom. |
| l'ami | the friend (elision) | la-mee لا می | le + ami becomes l'ami. The e of le disappears completely. |
| j'ai | I have (elision) | zhay ژے | je + ai becomes j'ai. One single syllable. A fixed block, revisited in lesson 9. |
| qu'il | that he / that it (elision) | keel کِیل | que + il becomes qu'il. Two words melt into one sound. |
| D'accord | Okay. / Agreed. | da-kor دا کور | Very common in speech. Often said twice: D'accord, d'accord. |
| voilà | there you go / that is it | vwa-la ووا لا | A great little word to end an explanation. |
| un numéro | a number (m) | uhn nü-may-ro اَن نُومے رو | Masculine. Useful for spelling phone numbers. The é is a short ay, the ü has no English or Urdu letter *. |
Pronunciation
| Word | Sounds like | Slowly | How to make the sound |
|---|---|---|---|
| les amis (correct, with liaison) | lay-za-mee | lay ... za ... mee | The s of les was silent on its own, but the vowel of amis wakes it and turns it into a z. Three linked pieces with no gap. This is the good version. |
| les amis (without liaison — avoid this) | lay a-mee | lay ... a ... mee | Here the s stays asleep and there is a small hole between the words. It is understandable, but it sounds broken and foreign. French people almost never speak like this. This item is here for contrast only — do not practise it. |
| vous avez | voo-za-vay | voo ... za ... vay | Exactly the same pattern as les amis: a silent s becomes a z and links to the next vowel. This liaison is compulsory, so always link it. |
| un grand homme | uhn grahn-tom | uhn ... grahn ... tom | The silent d of grand does not stay silent here — it becomes a clear t sound. Note that homme starts with a silent h, so the liaison happens as if the word began with o. Without the liaison this would be grahn-om. |
| c'est un | seh-tuhn | seh ... tuhn | The t of c'est is normally silent, but before un it wakes up. Then un keeps its nasal vowel: seh-tuhn, with no n sound at the end. |
| l'ami, j'ai, qu'il | la-mee, zhay, keel | la-mee ... zhay ... keel | Three examples of elision. The little vowel of le, je, que simply disappears and an apostrophe takes its place. Each one is a single short sound — never say le-ami or je-ai. |
| spelling: A, B, C, G, J | ah, bay, say, zhay, zhee | ah ... bay ... say ... zhay ... zhee | The two that catch everyone: G is zhay and J is zhee. Both use the zh of the English word measure, not a hard g and not an English j. Keep them clearly apart when you spell your name on the phone. |
| spelling: Q, U, R | kü, ü, ehr | kü * ... ü * ... ehr | Three sounds with no honest English or Urdu letter *. Q and U both need tight whistle lips — round and small. R needs the light throat sound from lesson 4, tongue tip down behind the lower teeth. Take your time on these three; nobody will rush you on the phone. |
PAIRS / CONTRAST BLOCK — the whole lesson in one exercise. Say les amis the right way (with liaison) and then the wrong way (without), and hear how broken the wrong one sounds. Right: lay-za-mee. Wrong: lay-a-mee. In natural French the s always wakes up here, so you must never say the two words with a gap.
Grammar
Spelling out loud — the French letter names
When you spell in French, you do not just read the letters with English names — you say their French names. Some are easy (A is ah, C is say) and some surprise beginners: G is zhay, J is zhee, and they are very different from each other. The most difficult are Q (a tight kü) and U (the tight French u, which has no English or Urdu letter). R is said with the throat, not with the tongue. To spell a word you simply say the letters one after another with a small pause: A-L-I. Remember: a French letter name usually ends in a vowel sound, so it is naturally smooth.
Liaison and elision — how French words stick together
French hates a gap before a vowel. Two things happen. LIAISON: a silent final consonant wakes up and is pronounced when the next word starts with a vowel. The s of les and vous becomes a z (les amis = lay-za-mee). The t of c'est wakes up (c'est un = seh-tuhn). The d of grand turns into a t (un grand homme = uhn grahn-tom). ELISION: a short word loses its final vowel and joins the next word with an apostrophe — le + ami becomes l'ami, je + ai becomes j'ai, que + il becomes qu'il. At this level, the simplest safe rule is this: learn these groups as whole sounds, use liaison where you hear it from real speakers, and do not invent new liaisons by yourself. Some liaisons are compulsory, and some are forbidden — that fine detail comes later.
Examples
| French | English | Say it |
|---|---|---|
| Comment ça s'écrit ? | How is it spelled? | ko-man sa say-kree ↗ |
| Ça s'écrit A-L-I. | It is spelled A-L-I. | sa say-kree ah-ell-ee |
| Épelez, s'il vous plaît. | Spell it, please. | ay-puh-lay, seel voo pleh |
| Mon nom s'écrit L-I-N-A. | My name is spelled L-I-N-A. | mon non say-kree ell-ee-enn-ah |
| Les amis arrivent. | The friends are arriving. | lay-za-mee a-reev |
| Vous avez un numéro ? | Do you have a number? | voo-za-vay uhn nü-may-ro ↗ |
| C'est un ami de Paris. | It is a friend from Paris. | seh-tuhn a-mee duh pa-ree |
| C'est un grand homme. | He is a great man. | seh-tuhn grahn-tom |
| Voici l'ami de Lina. | This is Lina's friend. | vwa-see la-mee duh lee-na |
| D'accord, ça s'écrit comme ça. | Okay, it is written like that. | da-kor, sa say-kree kom sa |
| J'ai un mot difficile. | I have a difficult word. | zhay uhn mo dee-fee-seel |
| Ton nom s'écrit comment ? | How is your name spelled? | ton non say-kree ko-mahn ↗ |
| Voilà, c'est tout. | There you go, that is all. | vwa-la, seh too |
Dialogue: On the phone with a hotel
Spelling on the phone is the classic beginner task. Notice the liaison you can now hear in vous avez.
| French | English | Say it | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hotel | Bonjour, madame. Vous avez une réservation ? | Hello, madam. Do you have a reservation? | bon-zhoor, ma-dam, voo-za-vay ün ray-zehr-va-syon ↗ |
| Lina | Oui. Mon nom, c'est Lina. | Yes. My name is Lina. | wee, mon non, seh lee-na |
| Hotel | Épelez, s'il vous plaît. | Spell it, please. | ay-puh-lay, seel voo pleh |
| Lina | L-I-N-A. L-I-N-A. | L-I-N-A. L-I-N-A. | ell-ee-enn-ah, ell-ee-enn-ah |
| Hotel | D'accord. Et votre numéro ? | Okay. And your number? | da-kor, ay votr nü-may-ro ↗ |
| Lina | C'est un zéro, un, deux, trois. | It is a zero, one, two, three. | seh-tuhn zay-ro, uhn, duh, trwa |
Say it out loud
- Comment ça s'écrit ? — How is it spelled? Rise at the end — it is a question.
- Épelez, s'il vous plaît. — Spell it, please. Link the three parts smoothly.
- A, B, C, D, E, F, G. — A, B, C, D, E, F, G. G is zhay, not gee.
- H, I, J, K, L, M, N. — H, I, J, K, L, M, N. J is zhee, not jay.
- Les amis, vous avez un ami. — The friends, you have a friend. Two liaisons in one line.
- C'est un grand homme. — He is a great man. Two liaisons: seh-tuhn and grahn-tom.
- L'ami, j'ai, qu'il. — The friend, I have, that he. Three elisions. Each is one short sound.
- Ça s'écrit L-I-N-A. — It is spelled L-I-N-A. Spell your own name the same way.
- Voilà, ça s'écrit comme ça. — There you go, it is written like that. Flat statement, small fall at the end.
Listening practice: Spelling a name at a hotel
Bonjour, madame. Vous avez une réservation ? Oui. Mon nom, c'est Lina. Épelez, s'il vous plaît. L-I-N-A. D'accord, merci. Et votre numéro ? C'est un zéro, un, deux, trois. Voilà.
Hello, madam. Do you have a reservation? Yes. My name is Lina. Spell it, please. L-I-N-A. Okay, thank you. And your number? It is a zero, one, two, three. There you go.
Questions
- What is the woman's name? Nina / Lina / Lila → Lina
- What does the receptionist ask her to do? To pay / To spell her name / To wait → To spell her name
- Why is the receptionist asking for the number? A phone number or room number for the booking / The time / The price of bread → A phone number or room number for the booking
- Which number is first in the number she says? One / Zero / Two → Zero
- What liaison can you hear in the first line? vous avez, said voo-za-vay / les amis / un grand homme → vous avez, said voo-za-vay
Remember this
- Comment ça s'écrit ? = how is it written. Ça s'écrit… = it is written…
- Spell out loud using FRENCH letter names: G = zhay, J = zhee, Z = zed, Q = kü *.
- Liaison: a silent final consonant becomes pronounced before a vowel.
- vous avez = voo-za-vay, les amis = lay-za-mee, c'est un = seh-tuhn, un grand homme = uhn grahn-tom.
- Elision: le + ami = l'ami, je + ai = j'ai, que + il = qu'il.
- [object Object]
- At this level, learn these groups as whole sounds. Do not invent your own liaisons.
- Intonation recap: a question rises ↗, a statement falls ↘, and no syllable carries a strong stress.
- Recycled from lessons 2-5: quel, âge, j'ai, un numéro, tu, vous, s'il vous plaît, merci, voilà.
Common mistakes
| Instead of | Say | Why |
|---|---|---|
| lay a-mee (les amis with no liaison) | lay-za-mee | The s of les wakes up as a z before the vowel. Without it the phrase sounds broken and unnatural. |
| le-ami, je-ai, que-il | l'ami, j'ai, qu'il | French elision always removes the little vowel and adds an apostrophe. Saying both vowels is impossible in natural speech. |
| G said like an English gee, J said like an English jay | G is zhay, J is zhee | Both are the zh sound of measure. Mixing them up makes spelling names on the phone useless. |
| un grand homme said grahn-om or grand-om | uhn grahn-tom | The d does not disappear here — it becomes a t and links to the vowel of homme. |
| a-mee pronounced with the English a as in name | a-mee with a short open ah | French a is a short open ah, never the English ay. This is the same rule from lesson 2. |
Practice questions
- How do you ask how a word is written? Comment ça va ? / Comment ça s'écrit ? / Comment allez-vous ? / Vous êtes d'où ? — Comment ça s'écrit ?
- Which letter name uses the zh sound? G / C / K / T — G
- How is the letter Z named in French? zee / zed / zay / za — zed
- What is liaison? A silent letter becoming pronounced before a vowel / Adding a new word / Dropping the last word / Writing with an apostrophe — A silent letter becoming pronounced before a vowel
- How is les amis pronounced correctly? lay a-mee / lay-za-mee / le-za-mee / lay-sa-mee — lay-za-mee
- What is elision? A short word loses its final vowel and joins the next word / A letter becomes silent / A word gets stress / A vowel becomes nasal — A short word loses its final vowel and joins the next word
- Which is the correct elision of le + ami? le ami / l'ami / la ami / l'amie — l'ami
- In un grand homme, what happens to the d of grand? It stays silent / It becomes a t sound / It becomes a d sound / It becomes a z sound — It becomes a t sound
- Which of these is an ELISION and not a liaison? vous avez / c'est un / j'ai / les amis — j'ai
- Which letter name is a tight kü with no English or Urdu equivalent? C / Q / K / R — Q
Homework (15 minutes)
1) Spell your own full name out loud three times, using the French letter names, then record it. 2) Say these four liaisons ten times each and feel the letter waking up: vous_avez, les_amis, c'est_un, un_grand_homme. 3) Then deliberately say les amis the WRONG way (lay a-mee) once, so you can hear the difference clearly. 4) Write five short sentences, one for each: l'ami, j'ai, qu'il, D'accord, voilà.
Lesson 6 of 45 · Part 0 · Absolute Start · See the full A0 → A2 roadmap · Français A0 → A2