Final Consonant Deletion

One of the secrets to learning French is mastering the reading rules. Once you have these down it’s much easier to learn the language. During my private French lessons via Skype I put a strong emphasis on explaining these reading rules from the very start.

One of the most important reading rules is as follows: NEVER pronounce the last consonant on a word that ends in two consonants. In this short lesson I’ll go through two lists of words ending with two consonants.

The first list of words ends with the letters -RT and the second ends with the letters -RD. Listen and repeat. The rule for the -RT rules is that you pronounce the R and ignore the T. The rule for the -RD words is that you pronounce the R and ignore the D.

If you’re looking to improve your French pronunciation and are looking for a more complete online course I’d recommend “Secrets of French Pronunciation” taught by Camille over at Frenchtoday.com. Click here to learn more.

Listen to the audio lesson below:
[display_podcast]

Words Ending in -RT

• le concert concert
• le dessert dessert
• le rapport link, connection
• le report report
• un quart one-fourth
• le depart departure
• l’efford effort
• le port harbor
• l’export export
• l’expert expert
• le roquefort a French cheese
• le camenbert a French cheese
• ouvert opened (adjective, masculine)
• vert green (adjective, masculine)
• fort strong (adjective, masculine)
• à part separately
• Robert
• Gilbert
• Hubert
• Exceptions: Le t-shirt, le yaourt

Words Ending in -RD

• d’accord okay, agreed
• le placard closet, cupboard
• le cafard cockroach
• le clébard dog (slang)
• le homard lobster
• le brouillard fog
• le canard duck
• le épinard spinach
• à bord abord
• d’abord first
• sourd deaf (adjective, masculine)
• le renard fox
• le nord north
• bavard talkative (adjective, masculine)
• Richard
• Bernard
• Édouard Edward

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David Issokson

David Issokson is a lifelong language enthusiast. His head is swimming with words and sounds as he speaks over six languages. Of all the languages he speaks, he's the most passionate about French! David has helped hundreds of students to improve their French in his private online lessons. When procrastinating working on his site, FrenchLearner.com, David enjoys his time skiing and hiking in Teton Valley, Idaho.

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