You are learning French, but aside from grammar and vocabulary, you feel challenged by the pronunciation. What is the key to making all those uniquely French sounds?

There are different categories of French sounds, and these the most unique ones to the language, and therefore, challenging. They are the following:

Voyelles orales (“oral vowels”)

• Voyelles antérieures (“front vowels”)

You produce them by placing your tongue to the front of your mouth, as in the English word “feet” and “stylo” (pen) in French.

• Voyelles centrales (“central vowels”)Place the tongue in the middle of your mouth, as in “pure” and “lune”(moon) in French.
• Voyelles postérieures (“back vowels”)

 Place your tongue in the back of your mouth, as in “tourist” and “goûter”(“to taste”) in French.

Voyelles nasales (“nasal vowels”)
To make this sound, use the air passage through the nose and lower the soft palate while the air goes through the mouth; like in the French word “parfum” (perfume).
The Vibrante (“Vibrant”) “R”
This French sound is usually challenging. It is used for the letter “r” as in the French word “roue”(wheel), or butter in English. Remember that for this sound, To pronounce the letter –r in French, try to reproduce the sound of an angry growling dog. Harden the rolling –gr sound to reproduce a nice French sound!
As you keep trying out, you will be discovering muscles you never knew you had! While learning French, you’re discovering your own anatomy!