The French alphabet and its sounds
Meet the letters, hear their names, and practise spelling your name.
12 minutes · A free lesson from First steps: alphabet and everyday basics · Roman and Urdu pronunciation guides and English meanings are shown under each phrase
Welcome! No previous French is needed. Start with five letters at a time. Listen, repeat, then cover the pronunciation guide and try again.
Alphabet — letter names
French uses 26 letters. Accents such as é, è, ê and ç are not extra alphabet letters. é is a short 'eh/ay' sound; è is like the vowel in 'bed'. ou sounds like 'oo'. For u, say 'ee' with rounded lips. r is made at the back of the mouth. Nasal vowels let air through the nose: the guides use (n) and ں, not a fully spoken n. Many final consonants are silent. In some word pairs a normally silent consonant joins the next vowel (liaison); it does not happen at every word boundary.
| é | Say eh | اے |
| è | Say eh (open vowel) | اَے |
| ou | Say oo | اُو |
| u | Say ue (rounded lips) | ایُ (ہونٹ گول) |
| r | Say r (back of the throat) | غ (حلق سے) |
Say it out loud (30 seconds): Say the letters in your first name, slowly. Repeat them once without looking at the guide.
Quick check: What is the best way to learn a new sound?
- Only read its spelling
- Listen, repeat and compare with the audio
- Skip every unfamiliar letter
Show the answer
B: Listen, repeat and compare with the audio — Use the reading guide to get started, then copy the sound you hear.
Lesson quiz
Check what you have learned. Choose an answer to see whether it is right, and why.
Quick check: What do the Roman and Urdu “Say:” lines give you?
- The meaning of the word
- A spelling rule to learn
- An approximate guide to the sound
Show the answer
C: An approximate guide to the sound — They are reading aids for the sound. The English “Means:” line is the one that gives the meaning.
Quick check: What should you do when a letter sounds different inside a word from its name?
- Copy the sound you hear in the audio
- Always say the letter's name
- Leave the word out
Show the answer
A: Copy the sound you hear in the audio — Letter names are for spelling. Inside a word, listen and copy the sound.
Quick check: Which line tells you what a word means?
- The Roman line, “Say:”
- The English line, “Means:”
- The Urdu line, “Say:”
Show the answer
B: The English line, “Means:” — The two “Say:” lines help with the sound. The “Means:” line gives the English meaning.